Imagine if you will, that humans are equal to molecules. I know this may be hard because humanity views itself as the rulers of all it sees, and molecules seem so insignificant, but that is of no consequence. Each human is a molecule, a human molecule, and thus they must interact with other molecules, whether they be human or something else (plant, beast, nature itself, and perhaps even technology or non-nature things), in order to survive. Likewise, these different molecules interact to form cohesive cells, which are held together by mutual respect and a belief in the group or the cell. If you are feeling insignificant, good, because we are, but to make some of you feel a little at ease, imagine humanity as the nucleus or the control center of the cell, perhaps even the DNA. So each cell could be viewed as either a belief system or a particular area of planetary interaction, which gives new meaning to thought of “church cells” or “cell groups” or even “terrorist cells”. Thus, as a whole, these cells form tissues, and this particular tissue is Earth. Tissues make up organs, and this can be seen in solar systems. Likewise, organs make up body systems and functions, and this can be seen as galaxies, and lastly, body systems comprise the entire body, and this can be seen as the universe. If there are multiple universes as some suggest, then there are merely just multiple beings, each with their own complex systems. While that may seem mind-boggling to some, it makes sense in terms of the microcosm-macrocosm relationships found everywhere.
If we follow this thinking, then the “brain of this being” or the godhead as represented in many religions (Brahma is the godhead of Hinduism, and the rest of the gods follow a hierarchy similar to the body makeup described above), thinks for the whole, but the body is so vast and beyond the physical senses of the molecule, that it is indescribable. Thus, we have the concept of the incomprehensible Self. As represented in Star Wars, the Force, part of which is the indescribable godhead, commands its will to us through neurons which transmit through energy transfers, like bio-electricity, and if we are in tune with the Force, if we are in tune with this energy, we can heed its call and follow its wishes. If you want an example of this in human reality, think of biofeedback or meditation. If you focus your mind onto something, then your energy will transmit your wants and wishes down to the very basic levels of your existence, and changes will occur. Likewise, in Star Wars, the Jedi’s relationship with the Force has been clouded by the “Dark Side”, and their ability to perceive its wishes, as well as its warnings, is severely weakened. Thus Palpantine or Darth Sidious, whichever you prefer, casts a shadow over the minds of the Jedi, the protectors of galaxy, the white blood cells of the Force’s being, while he grows in power, almost like a cancer cell grows, surrounds, and eventually destroys (or swallows) the cells of a tissue.
Keeping with this thought, many of you might be becoming angry with me and might be putting this paper down (or worse, burning it), for if you make the logical connections, that Palpantine is an illustration of monotheism and a cancer at the same time, then monotheism, and more specifically, Christianity, the religion of many within the U.S., might be a cancer as well. To answer your growing questions, yes, it is a cancer. It perpetuates itself through the weakness of humanity, duality, and separates everyone in the process. Monotheism, by its nature, is a dividing belief system. It believes in nothing else but itself (essentially harming or killing the SELF), and all conflicting beliefs are evil or wrong, while they believe themselves to be good and right. According to novels within the lengthy series based on events twenty-five plus years after Return of the Jedi (The New Jedi Order series), Luke learns that there is no “Dark Side” in the Force, the Force is not evil, nor is it good, it merely exists. The “Dark Side” resides within the person. Likewise, Palpantine, and Monotheism, utilizes the dualistic conflict within humanity to control them. He generates his power through fear, fear of evil, fear of conflict, fear of “the ultimate power [the Death Star] in the universe”, for as Grand Moff Tarkin says, “Fear will keep them in line”. And yes, fear truly does keep us in line. Fears hell, evil, Satan, Terrorists, Communism, and eternal retribution keep humanity in line.
These fears are perpetuated by all parts of Monotheism, including Christianity. Hell is the place of eternal retribution, eternal damnation by God, and it is ruled by the ultimate terror, Satan. Terrorists, so aptly connected to Islam, the monotheistic nemesis of Christianity, are fueled by a fire of hate towards Democracy and “freedom”, but it is Christianity and Democracy that force themselves into the vast reaches of our tissue, our Earth, like a cancer, and add more logs to the fire of hate that burns with the terrorists. Communism, the mortal enemy of Democracy, is also the enemy of monotheism because of its atheistic demands. True Communism is probably the best form of government; however, true Communism will probably never exist due to the duality and lack of connection within humanity. Likewise, the Jedi Order can be seen as Communistic Theocracy, where the Force is their guide, and the only distinction between members is the level of knowledge/connection with the Force that individual has. The Jedi are not supposed to have material possessions, except for their robes and lightsaber, and are not focused on the good of their individual selves, but rather, the good of the group, the order, the Republic. Following these connections, perhaps Palpantine and Monotheism are not cancers, but rather, a twisted strain of HIV, a virus that takes over a tissue, an organ, a body, and then replaces all the white blood cells (Jedi or occult) with its own twisted versions that allow it to control the body, control the world, control the universe, yet at the same time, maintaining an imperfect sense of order because it recognizes that without some semblance of order, the body would die. Many recognize that the Demi-urge, if there is one, that plagues and controls society, would never let the world end, it would never allow the world to fall into complete chaos. If such an event happened, it would lose power because there would be nothing to control. Likewise, Palpantine would never kill everyone off, just those who are a threat to him, like the Jedi.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Friday, December 31, 2010
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Star Wars and Christianity
Despite the claims of many, including Dick Staub (“Christian Wisdom of the Jedi Masters”), the Jedi are not a symbol of Christian saints, they can’t be because Lucas created the idea of the Force (and subsequently the Jedi) from Eastern philosophies and beliefs. On the back of “Christian Wisdom…”, Rand Miller, the CEO of Cyan Worlds and co-creator of Myst, Riven, and URU, says “Star Wars seems to have stolen our message, wrapped it in science fiction, and changed entertainment. Dick Staub challenges us to take it back, wrap it around everyday reality, and change people’s lives.” This selfish understanding of everything that the soul deems to be true is one of the most perverse qualities of Christianity; the Force is not Allah, YHWH, or the nameless “God” of Christianity, it is the SELF. It creates all living things, and as Yoda says, “It is an energy field created by all living things”. This may seem just as paradoxical as the eternal question, “What came first, the chicken or the egg?”, but in the end, Eastern philosophy makes this quite simple with the concept of the splitting Self. In this light, the egg was probably created from a part of something, the egg of another related animal if you are an evolutionist, or the egg of a metaphysical kind if you are a creationist. Ignoring the difference of opinion on physical creation or procreation, the Force splits itself off to create “living things”, and because all living things possess that spark of the Force, any new creation of a “living thing”, creates again in the Force. Think about the hologram and how splitting it apart, and then recombining it, it is still the same image, the same random lines. Thus Jedi are not Christian saints, but perhaps, Samurai, Ninjas, or warrior Shamans (or magicians – think Merlin with a sword); they are the warrior-philosophers of the occult. The Jedi are the antithesis of Christian saints; they are the embodiment of the “diabolic occult” that Campbell describes as being the polar opposite of Christianity.
Following this line, the saints of Christianity, and all of the religion (as well as all of Monotheism) itself, would be in line with the Sith, the enemies of the Jedi, the followers of the “dark side of the Force”. How can this be? How can those who claim to be in the light, actually be the embodiment of mythical evil? Well, a common cliché offers one answer, “Everyman believes himself to be right, and thus justified in his actions”. Gnosticism offers another explanation, ignorance. This ignorance can be taken many ways. The ignorance is just a failure by those in power to recognize their ignorance, for admitting such would result in a loss in power to some degree. This ignorance could be seen, from a Gnostic viewpoint, as humanity’s ignorance being perpetuated by an evil, or, at the very least, soulless being, a Demi-urge, an anti-god(s), the Archons, or what have you. This soulless being sets itself up as a god, and rules humanity, spreading lies and half-truths to keep humanity ignorant, for it realizes that humanity has the potential to be more powerful than it because humanity has a soul, a spark of God, a part of the Self.
Thus, the monotheistic, tribal god of the Levantine belief systems is not the Force, not the “Light Side”, but actually, the “Dark Side” of the Force, represented in Star Wars as the ultimate villain, not Darth Vader, but Emperor Palpantine. This man begins the story as a kind, caring politician, a people’s politician, an embodiment of all that is good, but in actuality, he is in fact the evil Sith Lord, Darth Sidious (ironically synonymous with hideous) who has been casting “a shadow of darkness” over the Republic and the Jedi themselves. Palpantine utilizes conflict and fear to spread his shadow and hide his true intentions, to eliminate the Jedi (the only ones remotely powerful enough to stop him) and rule the galaxy. In The Phantom Menace, he utilizes the Trade Federation to create conflict with a single, helpless planet, Naboo, ironically, his homeworld. He also utilizes his apprentice, Darth Maul, to assist with the conflict, and draw out the Jedi. Darth Maul is just a pawn, but his unused words (found only on the soundtrack), give us insight into the Sith (and monotheism), “Fear attracts the fearful, the strong, the weak, the innocent. Fear is my ally”. (Lucas) Maul’s words echo Palpantine, for Sidious uses fear to create conflicts, conflicts within the Senate, conflicts on Naboo, conflicts among the Jedi, and lastly, conflicts between the entire galaxy. Likewise, Christianity and monotheism utilize fear to keep to control and gain power. The witch trials and heresy purges (similar to “The Great Purge” in Jedi lore) that plagued Europe and the Americas during the Church’s rise to power is evidence enough. Palpantine soon rises up through the political ranks and becomes the Chancellor of the Republic, the leader and the face of democracy. With his new power, Palpantine sets out to gain the loving trust and respect of everyone within the Republic, and once he has done that, he sets his final conflict into motion. This final conflict results in the Clone Wars, a war that is outwardly initiated by Count Dooku, Darth Tyrannus, who is Palpantine’s next apprentice (Darth Maul was killed by Obi-Wan at the end of The Phantom Menace), but is actually coordinated from both sides by Sidious. Tyrannus fulfills the dualistic Satan role. Someone who outwardly opposes the Republic and its face, Palpantine, but internally, he is in line with Palpantine, and the entire conflict is in fact just a lethal drama, a proxy war, a mask, with only one purpose: power. The senate, in love with the face of their own democracy (Narcissism at its tragic and ironic worst), gives Palpantine more and more executive powers until he is an emperor in every way except by name.
While in his lust for power, Palpantine comes across the Jedi prophecy of “the chosen one” (even the Sith were able access to Jedi records, secretly, thus the reason for the mysterious disappearance of the planet Kamino from the Jedi Archives during Attack of the Clones). When it is revealed, or guessed, that little Anakin Skywalker is “the chosen one”, he immediately becomes the focus of Palpantine. Palpantine, a man without a soul, a man of deception who uses his mind to control his body (thus the deceptive face that is eventually lost and permanently revealed during Revenge of the Sith), targets the chosen one, and his Force-powered emotions, his soul. This is why we see Anakin as a teen with raging, illogical, emotions, full of emotional outbursts, in Attack of the Clones. Anakin can feel, he can truly feel, with his soul, and Palpantine uses deception, duality, and “logic” to cloud his mind and fuel his emotions. Anakin, against the laws of the Jedi Order, is in love, in love with Padme, former Queen of Naboo and now a respected senator. He loves her with all his heart, and will do anything to save her, even if it means leaving the Jedi, and “turning to the dark side”. During Revenge of the Sith, Anakin is haunted by nightmares, nightmares of Padme’s death during childbirth. These nightmares are reminiscent of the ones that foretold his mother’s death, and he feels guilty for not acting on them sooner, for not being able to save his mother. These nightmares are his shadow, and Palpantine is his supposed light to supply Padme’s redemption. Palpantine weaves a web of lies and half-truths that turns Anakin against the Jedi, against his friends; he offers a chance to save Padme, a power of immortality that only the ways of the Sith can bring. Anakin, absorbed by his FEAR, turns against the Jedi, becomes a Sith, and becomes an apprentice of the “fire”, a worshipper of Sidious, his “true master”. In the end, as Anakin turns to the fire for help, he stands between the fire and his “shadow wall”, his dreams. Thus, when it is he who kills Padme, out of a blind-rage, fueled by deception, his prophesizing dreams are completed, completed by the one tormented by them. This is the self-fulfilling lesson of fear, if fear is your only reality, your only focus, then your fears will become reality.
This fear is eventually ended when Darth Vader is finally redeemed by his son, Luke Skywalker, in the final scenes of Return of the Jedi. Vader, convinced by the suffering of his son, the suffering of his lifeblood, the suffering of part of his SELF (not himself, but his part in the Force, his creation, his son; the son that was born out of the suffering of Padme, a suffering created by Anakin), turns back to the “good”, back to the “light”, and fulfills his destiny, fulfills his purpose, and destroys the Emperor. Thus, it is the hero quest that saves Anakin Skywalker, the fallen hero; it is the return of the occult, the Return of the Jedi that saves the galaxy.
This is the story of Christ. Not the person, not the kind being that so many of us adore and “worship”, but the embodiment of Christ. Monotheism took the prophecies of this “savior”, and twisted it for its own purpose. Anakin was supposed to be the “chosen one”, much like Christ was the supposed savior. Anakin was supposed to “bring balance to the Force” (much like the triangular balance), and Christ, from the Gnostic point of view, came down to save us from ignorance, to save us from the Demi-urge, and to save us from our duality.
Anakin, from the beginning, was different. He was emotional, he was powerful, he was CONNECTED to the Force. The Jedi were so afraid of the “Dark Side” that they refrained from emotion, for fear that it would consume a person into the “Dark”. The Jedi instead focused on controlling the mind and the body, balance. Their balance, however, was not a balance held by three points, but a balance, a compromise, between two points, between duality; trying to balance between two points, much like trying to balance on a tightrope, is very difficult for some, impossible for most. Anakin and his emotions were the key to restoring “balance to the Force”, adding the necessary third point. The Jedi, blinded by Duality, refused to see this, creating further conflict, conflict within Anakin and within the Jedi Order. Palpantine, seizes the opportunity afforded him by the Jedi’s fears, and utilizes Anakin for his own plans. Palpantine twists the essence of Anakin, the emotions of Anakin, into a monster, a monster with no compassion, no fear. Anakin becomes Darth Vader, and purges the Jedi Temple, leading an attack that kills everyone within the Temple, even the children. Following his epic fight with Obi-Wan, Darth Vader is left for dead, but with the help of the newly crowned Emperor Palpantine, he survives through technology, but is forever trapped within it.
Christ, likewise, came to save us from duality, to save us from the Demi-urge. The key to this is the soul, and emotions are the basic essence of the soul. To feel emotion is an attempt to understand the connections we share. Christ’s teachings of the Holy Spirit and the many parables, are an attempt to free us from our bind and allow us to see the light of the truth, and to feel the true nature of the source, the Sun, the Self. Monotheism (whether it is controlled by an evil Demi-urge, like Palpantine, or perhaps by man’s own ignorance) took the story of Christ and twisted it; it twisted the essence of it into a religion predicated upon fear. Much like Anakin feared the death of Padme, Christianity fears falling prey to “the Devil”. They fear death and eternal damnation. Those with a feeling for the SELF, a semblance of a soul, feel for the “doom” of humanity, the apocalypse, and try to “save” the rest of the world. In the end, though, these fears create themselves. Blinded by “moral justice”, monotheism, especially Christianity (and later Islam) force themselves onto the world. Many innocent people have died in the name of “purification”, in the attempts to “free” the world from “the Devil”. Like Anakin eventually killed Padme, the one he was trying to save all along, Christianity, under the control of Monotheism, is killing the world while supposedly trying to save it.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Following this line, the saints of Christianity, and all of the religion (as well as all of Monotheism) itself, would be in line with the Sith, the enemies of the Jedi, the followers of the “dark side of the Force”. How can this be? How can those who claim to be in the light, actually be the embodiment of mythical evil? Well, a common cliché offers one answer, “Everyman believes himself to be right, and thus justified in his actions”. Gnosticism offers another explanation, ignorance. This ignorance can be taken many ways. The ignorance is just a failure by those in power to recognize their ignorance, for admitting such would result in a loss in power to some degree. This ignorance could be seen, from a Gnostic viewpoint, as humanity’s ignorance being perpetuated by an evil, or, at the very least, soulless being, a Demi-urge, an anti-god(s), the Archons, or what have you. This soulless being sets itself up as a god, and rules humanity, spreading lies and half-truths to keep humanity ignorant, for it realizes that humanity has the potential to be more powerful than it because humanity has a soul, a spark of God, a part of the Self.
Thus, the monotheistic, tribal god of the Levantine belief systems is not the Force, not the “Light Side”, but actually, the “Dark Side” of the Force, represented in Star Wars as the ultimate villain, not Darth Vader, but Emperor Palpantine. This man begins the story as a kind, caring politician, a people’s politician, an embodiment of all that is good, but in actuality, he is in fact the evil Sith Lord, Darth Sidious (ironically synonymous with hideous) who has been casting “a shadow of darkness” over the Republic and the Jedi themselves. Palpantine utilizes conflict and fear to spread his shadow and hide his true intentions, to eliminate the Jedi (the only ones remotely powerful enough to stop him) and rule the galaxy. In The Phantom Menace, he utilizes the Trade Federation to create conflict with a single, helpless planet, Naboo, ironically, his homeworld. He also utilizes his apprentice, Darth Maul, to assist with the conflict, and draw out the Jedi. Darth Maul is just a pawn, but his unused words (found only on the soundtrack), give us insight into the Sith (and monotheism), “Fear attracts the fearful, the strong, the weak, the innocent. Fear is my ally”. (Lucas) Maul’s words echo Palpantine, for Sidious uses fear to create conflicts, conflicts within the Senate, conflicts on Naboo, conflicts among the Jedi, and lastly, conflicts between the entire galaxy. Likewise, Christianity and monotheism utilize fear to keep to control and gain power. The witch trials and heresy purges (similar to “The Great Purge” in Jedi lore) that plagued Europe and the Americas during the Church’s rise to power is evidence enough. Palpantine soon rises up through the political ranks and becomes the Chancellor of the Republic, the leader and the face of democracy. With his new power, Palpantine sets out to gain the loving trust and respect of everyone within the Republic, and once he has done that, he sets his final conflict into motion. This final conflict results in the Clone Wars, a war that is outwardly initiated by Count Dooku, Darth Tyrannus, who is Palpantine’s next apprentice (Darth Maul was killed by Obi-Wan at the end of The Phantom Menace), but is actually coordinated from both sides by Sidious. Tyrannus fulfills the dualistic Satan role. Someone who outwardly opposes the Republic and its face, Palpantine, but internally, he is in line with Palpantine, and the entire conflict is in fact just a lethal drama, a proxy war, a mask, with only one purpose: power. The senate, in love with the face of their own democracy (Narcissism at its tragic and ironic worst), gives Palpantine more and more executive powers until he is an emperor in every way except by name.
While in his lust for power, Palpantine comes across the Jedi prophecy of “the chosen one” (even the Sith were able access to Jedi records, secretly, thus the reason for the mysterious disappearance of the planet Kamino from the Jedi Archives during Attack of the Clones). When it is revealed, or guessed, that little Anakin Skywalker is “the chosen one”, he immediately becomes the focus of Palpantine. Palpantine, a man without a soul, a man of deception who uses his mind to control his body (thus the deceptive face that is eventually lost and permanently revealed during Revenge of the Sith), targets the chosen one, and his Force-powered emotions, his soul. This is why we see Anakin as a teen with raging, illogical, emotions, full of emotional outbursts, in Attack of the Clones. Anakin can feel, he can truly feel, with his soul, and Palpantine uses deception, duality, and “logic” to cloud his mind and fuel his emotions. Anakin, against the laws of the Jedi Order, is in love, in love with Padme, former Queen of Naboo and now a respected senator. He loves her with all his heart, and will do anything to save her, even if it means leaving the Jedi, and “turning to the dark side”. During Revenge of the Sith, Anakin is haunted by nightmares, nightmares of Padme’s death during childbirth. These nightmares are reminiscent of the ones that foretold his mother’s death, and he feels guilty for not acting on them sooner, for not being able to save his mother. These nightmares are his shadow, and Palpantine is his supposed light to supply Padme’s redemption. Palpantine weaves a web of lies and half-truths that turns Anakin against the Jedi, against his friends; he offers a chance to save Padme, a power of immortality that only the ways of the Sith can bring. Anakin, absorbed by his FEAR, turns against the Jedi, becomes a Sith, and becomes an apprentice of the “fire”, a worshipper of Sidious, his “true master”. In the end, as Anakin turns to the fire for help, he stands between the fire and his “shadow wall”, his dreams. Thus, when it is he who kills Padme, out of a blind-rage, fueled by deception, his prophesizing dreams are completed, completed by the one tormented by them. This is the self-fulfilling lesson of fear, if fear is your only reality, your only focus, then your fears will become reality.
This fear is eventually ended when Darth Vader is finally redeemed by his son, Luke Skywalker, in the final scenes of Return of the Jedi. Vader, convinced by the suffering of his son, the suffering of his lifeblood, the suffering of part of his SELF (not himself, but his part in the Force, his creation, his son; the son that was born out of the suffering of Padme, a suffering created by Anakin), turns back to the “good”, back to the “light”, and fulfills his destiny, fulfills his purpose, and destroys the Emperor. Thus, it is the hero quest that saves Anakin Skywalker, the fallen hero; it is the return of the occult, the Return of the Jedi that saves the galaxy.
This is the story of Christ. Not the person, not the kind being that so many of us adore and “worship”, but the embodiment of Christ. Monotheism took the prophecies of this “savior”, and twisted it for its own purpose. Anakin was supposed to be the “chosen one”, much like Christ was the supposed savior. Anakin was supposed to “bring balance to the Force” (much like the triangular balance), and Christ, from the Gnostic point of view, came down to save us from ignorance, to save us from the Demi-urge, and to save us from our duality.
Anakin, from the beginning, was different. He was emotional, he was powerful, he was CONNECTED to the Force. The Jedi were so afraid of the “Dark Side” that they refrained from emotion, for fear that it would consume a person into the “Dark”. The Jedi instead focused on controlling the mind and the body, balance. Their balance, however, was not a balance held by three points, but a balance, a compromise, between two points, between duality; trying to balance between two points, much like trying to balance on a tightrope, is very difficult for some, impossible for most. Anakin and his emotions were the key to restoring “balance to the Force”, adding the necessary third point. The Jedi, blinded by Duality, refused to see this, creating further conflict, conflict within Anakin and within the Jedi Order. Palpantine, seizes the opportunity afforded him by the Jedi’s fears, and utilizes Anakin for his own plans. Palpantine twists the essence of Anakin, the emotions of Anakin, into a monster, a monster with no compassion, no fear. Anakin becomes Darth Vader, and purges the Jedi Temple, leading an attack that kills everyone within the Temple, even the children. Following his epic fight with Obi-Wan, Darth Vader is left for dead, but with the help of the newly crowned Emperor Palpantine, he survives through technology, but is forever trapped within it.
Christ, likewise, came to save us from duality, to save us from the Demi-urge. The key to this is the soul, and emotions are the basic essence of the soul. To feel emotion is an attempt to understand the connections we share. Christ’s teachings of the Holy Spirit and the many parables, are an attempt to free us from our bind and allow us to see the light of the truth, and to feel the true nature of the source, the Sun, the Self. Monotheism (whether it is controlled by an evil Demi-urge, like Palpantine, or perhaps by man’s own ignorance) took the story of Christ and twisted it; it twisted the essence of it into a religion predicated upon fear. Much like Anakin feared the death of Padme, Christianity fears falling prey to “the Devil”. They fear death and eternal damnation. Those with a feeling for the SELF, a semblance of a soul, feel for the “doom” of humanity, the apocalypse, and try to “save” the rest of the world. In the end, though, these fears create themselves. Blinded by “moral justice”, monotheism, especially Christianity (and later Islam) force themselves onto the world. Many innocent people have died in the name of “purification”, in the attempts to “free” the world from “the Devil”. Like Anakin eventually killed Padme, the one he was trying to save all along, Christianity, under the control of Monotheism, is killing the world while supposedly trying to save it.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
More 432, Yin-Yang, and Some Color Theory
According to an essay by Roger Gould-King, plants generate a humming noise, similar to the “AUM” of Hindu and Buddhist meditation mantras. This humming noise, according to the documentary he was watching, was generated by the plants to attract bees to pollinate them. Finding this curious, he recorded the hum from the broadcast and found it to be operating at 432 Hertz, the natural frequency setting for the “A” note. He then placed sound generators in his flower bed to simulate the hum he learned about through the documentary. Not surprisingly, this man-made hum stimulated the synergy of his garden, boosting the relationships (both in quality and quantity) of his flowers and the local bees. (online) This synergy, or equilibrium, is generated through a harmony in nature. This harmony is regulated by a common string in nature, the “A” note, 432. If the universe is one, massive body, one indescribable Self, then the number 432 is its DNA or its heartbeat. Joseph Campbell called it the “432,000 reflections of our world of time and space”. (219) Thus to understand what this mystical number means would most likely change the way we understand the universe.
In Taoism, the Yin-Yang symbol is supposed to be a microcosm of the entire nature of the Tao, the SELF. It is a circle split by two opposing forces, the dark, feminine Yin, and the light, masculine Yang. While one may use the Yin-Yang as an argument that duality is present in nature, and thus, justifiable, the Yin and Yang are not absolutes, like good and evil. Good and evil exist on a line, with two sides in strict opposition, while the Yin and Yang exist in a circle, within a flow, the flow of life. This is why the symbol is often used as a representation for the seasons (with Yin as winter and Yang as summer), as well as the elements, Earth, Air, Water, and Fire. This quadrant understanding of the circular Yin-Yang is the essence of 4. The circle, much like absolute truth, is infinite in nature, for it has an infinite number of points. This is why the constant, pi, perplexes and obsesses scientists and mathematics; it is irrational infinity, and the rational world of science and math cannot handle that. So using four to represent the circle, just like four represents the forth stage of knowledge, we can find the other numbers of 432. Two is easy; it is the Yin and the Yang. It is the opposites of black and white. These opposites are not absolutes, for a small piece of Yang resides in Yin, and vice-versa. This is why the Yin-Yang cannot be compared to the duality of, say, good and evil. Good cannot exist in evil, and evil cannot exist in good, for that is an unexplainable paradox. Three, the final number of 432, is a little harder to find in the Yin-Yang, but it is there. There are three lines of separation between the Yin and the Yang (the large separation, and the two smaller circles). Thus, humanity is the lines between the opposites, between four and two. In this light, it is easy to understand why we feel trapped within duality, for we are stuck on one line between black and white, and we cannot recognize the other two lines, the other two points of humanity.
Sometimes we can take the microcosm duality of our apparent situation and imagine an opposite, thus creating the illusion of a dualistic macrocosm. In reality, we cannot see the line that runs between us, just like we cannot see the third point of the triangle. It is not until we step outside of ourselves, outside our microcosm, and peer into the macrocosm, that we understand the fourth truth of the Yin-Yang, like stepping outside our triangle and viewing the triangular pyramid as the truth.
We can apply the concepts of the Yin-Yang and triangles to colors. There are three Primary colors: red, blue, and yellow. There are also three Secondary colors: orange, green, and purple. Thus we have six colors, two interlocking triangles, and the basic color wheel. The Yin is female and the Yang is masculine, and their interaction creates six points, the six basic colors. At the heart of this circle is another circle, a circle of pure white. The white, the soul, the presence of every color, forms the seventh point. Taking a 3-D view of the color wheel, the primary colors could be seen to form the base triangle of the pyramid, and the secondary colors, the combinations of the primary colors, form the three rising sides, with the pure point of white at the top. Perhaps the reason art speaks to the soul is because its colors use the language of the soul, the frequency of the soul, 432.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
In Taoism, the Yin-Yang symbol is supposed to be a microcosm of the entire nature of the Tao, the SELF. It is a circle split by two opposing forces, the dark, feminine Yin, and the light, masculine Yang. While one may use the Yin-Yang as an argument that duality is present in nature, and thus, justifiable, the Yin and Yang are not absolutes, like good and evil. Good and evil exist on a line, with two sides in strict opposition, while the Yin and Yang exist in a circle, within a flow, the flow of life. This is why the symbol is often used as a representation for the seasons (with Yin as winter and Yang as summer), as well as the elements, Earth, Air, Water, and Fire. This quadrant understanding of the circular Yin-Yang is the essence of 4. The circle, much like absolute truth, is infinite in nature, for it has an infinite number of points. This is why the constant, pi, perplexes and obsesses scientists and mathematics; it is irrational infinity, and the rational world of science and math cannot handle that. So using four to represent the circle, just like four represents the forth stage of knowledge, we can find the other numbers of 432. Two is easy; it is the Yin and the Yang. It is the opposites of black and white. These opposites are not absolutes, for a small piece of Yang resides in Yin, and vice-versa. This is why the Yin-Yang cannot be compared to the duality of, say, good and evil. Good cannot exist in evil, and evil cannot exist in good, for that is an unexplainable paradox. Three, the final number of 432, is a little harder to find in the Yin-Yang, but it is there. There are three lines of separation between the Yin and the Yang (the large separation, and the two smaller circles). Thus, humanity is the lines between the opposites, between four and two. In this light, it is easy to understand why we feel trapped within duality, for we are stuck on one line between black and white, and we cannot recognize the other two lines, the other two points of humanity.
Sometimes we can take the microcosm duality of our apparent situation and imagine an opposite, thus creating the illusion of a dualistic macrocosm. In reality, we cannot see the line that runs between us, just like we cannot see the third point of the triangle. It is not until we step outside of ourselves, outside our microcosm, and peer into the macrocosm, that we understand the fourth truth of the Yin-Yang, like stepping outside our triangle and viewing the triangular pyramid as the truth.
We can apply the concepts of the Yin-Yang and triangles to colors. There are three Primary colors: red, blue, and yellow. There are also three Secondary colors: orange, green, and purple. Thus we have six colors, two interlocking triangles, and the basic color wheel. The Yin is female and the Yang is masculine, and their interaction creates six points, the six basic colors. At the heart of this circle is another circle, a circle of pure white. The white, the soul, the presence of every color, forms the seventh point. Taking a 3-D view of the color wheel, the primary colors could be seen to form the base triangle of the pyramid, and the secondary colors, the combinations of the primary colors, form the three rising sides, with the pure point of white at the top. Perhaps the reason art speaks to the soul is because its colors use the language of the soul, the frequency of the soul, 432.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
The Age of Reason and the Final Nail in the Coffin, Technology, and Scientific Theories
The occult was not just attacked by the totalitarianism of monotheism, but it was also attacked by that which it spawned, its child, if you will. The child of the occult is science, and they have been forever linked in humanity’s history, from the mystical tribal witchdoctor to the ancient philosophers of Greece, Rome, Egypt, and beyond to the Alchemist of the Middle Ages. The search for the unknown spawned a comprehensive study of the unknown, which led to the logic-based science seen in ancient Greece, Rome, and Egypt. From this light, it is not hard to understand why early mathematicians and scientists, like Pythagoras, created math and science-based belief systems, like numerology and sacred geometry. Thus when science turned its back on the occult during the Age of Reason, the occult was truly dead.
The Age of Reason spawned from man’s desire to utilize his intellect and understand, and then explain, everything. Despite all the knowledge they gained, these intellectuals of the Age of Reason were no more than everyday fools. Every teenager, at one point in their life, discovers enough of the world, that they claim to know everything, or enough to no longer need any more, but as every aged adult knows, they do not, and the quest for knowledge is a LIFE-long process. As Socrates said, according to Plato, “I am wise because I know that I do not know.” Despite all of his “knowledge”, Socrates realized that there were many things he did not know; Socrates recognized the occult, the hidden. This was the case of many philosophers of the ancient world. They were scientists and occultists at the same time, which isn’t hard to believe because they are different sides of the same spectrum of light. They recognized that the occult, science, and truth formed the triangular relationship of knowledge, and that through the occult and science, they could discover the truth. With two points, it is far easier to construct a triangle, than it is with just one point. With just one point, “the odds of successfully navigating an asteroid field [approximately 3720 to 1, according to C-3PO]” are far less than the odds of finding the other two points and successfully constructing a triangle even close to the real triangle in question. Despite this, science still pressed on without the occult.
The main goal of early scientists was to understand everything they saw, such as the stars. The stars were always a big part of the occult because they were unknown to humans before the telescope allowed us a closer, more detailed look. Galileo’s telescope, one of the many inventions during the Age of Reason, killed the occult. The mythic, human hero had been killed by the singularity that is monotheism, and only the gods of the heavens had remained. When science began to uncover the solar system and subsequently, the entire universe, there was no where left for the old occult to hide. Monotheism had killed the beloved hero, and science had slaughtered the gods. There ceased to be a mystical and metaphysical nature to the universe, and we were left with just the natural realm, as defined by science, and the supernatural realm, as defined by monotheistic religion. Without the occult to balance society, to provide the third link in the triangle, the link between natural and supernatural, monotheism and science fought on in the minds of humanity.
The fight between Monotheism and Science picked up considerable steam with Darwin, creating the debate which still carries considerable weight today: Creation vs. Evolution, the Big Bang vs. God, Old Earth vs. Young Earth, etc. Without the occult as a medium, just like the Star Wars galaxy without the Jedi, the state of duality pervades and rules society. The power between these two powers shifted back and forth over the course of the past, all the while, the occult, which was seemingly dead, waited for its to chance to spring back. As Campbell daftly points out, “With the end…of the mythological age… [it] did not actually end. It retired…behind the screen of time and space”. (206) This mythological age is actually the distant past of the ancient world, where man and gods lived together, in harmony, before time itself. This is why Star Wars begins with, “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…”, for the stories of Star Wars speak of the timeless myths, the never-ending occult. This occult continues on, behind the veil of our perceptions, behind the veil of its apparent death at the hands of science and monotheism; it carries on in the hearts of man in the form of romanticism, art, music, and love itself. For love, true love, is selfish, and rightly so because it is two parts of the same Self, joining together to form bonds and break barriers, to create life itself. Thus the Age of Reason moved onto the Age of Romanticism, and then on to the Age of Realism and then Modernism, and now, Post-modernism, all the while, the occult waited, it waited for the breath of life to be thrust into it by the expanding minds, hearts, and lungs of humanity. This is not so unlike the only two remaining Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, presumed to be dead, “their fire [having] gone out of the universe”, just waiting and watching, waiting for the right time, for the open mind of an another generation, the generation of “a new hope”, of spirited rebellion, of “the return of the Jedi”.
Thus, time moved on, without the outward presence of the occult, and science moved on as well. From Newton’s apple, came gravity, a mysterious force of attraction that, much like the divine spark (the Holy Spirit) in Christianity, is never fully explained. We know that it is an energy field, based on the attraction between two objects. Einstein and others of the early 20th century told us that it distorts the fabric of space-time, much like a ball resting on a blanket that is not completely taut. These distortions create ripples, and anything within these ripples, like say, the moon and all the inhabitants on Earth, are kept inside the boundaries created by this massive object, unless an object were to reach a speed fast enough to overcome the gravitational pull, the boundary of the ripple. Science tells us that mass and spin, or centripetal force, create gravity. Science also tells us, through Einstein’s famous formula, E = mc2, that energy equals mass times the speed of light squared (the speed of light, interestingly enough, is roughly 432 squared, just keep that in mind). Since the speed of light is a constant, about 186,000 miles per second, then essentially, energy equals mass, mass is energy. So perhaps gravity isn’t defined by the mass of an object, but instead the energy of an object. This energy is probably related to electro-magnetism, and one could perhaps picture the orbit between any two objects in terms of magnets. The larger, stronger magnet attracts the smaller one, through their opposite poles or energies, but their like poles or energies repel. Thus, the smaller magnet is held in an orbit around the point where the fields of the two magnets interact. If gravity can be reduced down to energy, then perhaps everything can. Perhaps there is an all-pervasive energy field that binds us, and controlling or using that field, that energy, will yield powers and abilities that cannot be fathomed at this point in human evolution.
Now, I will admit, this is a very elementary understanding of gravity and energy, but sometimes, we must KISS that which we are looking for, or in other words, “Keep it simple, stupid”. Yes, the string theory is a complex theory that attempts to explain every deficiency within quantum mechanics, thus providing us with a fundamental theory for everything; unfortunately, that theory has not been completely formulated, yet. I will go into the string theory later in the paper, and then I will tie it back into the energy theory I just formulated above.
Technology is the offspring of science, a tool created by the minds of humanity. To reject it, like those who reject progress in favor of nature, is to reject the mind. Without one of our points, we become relegated to duality and conflict. So technology is needed, but like the mind, it must be controlled by discipline, by understanding and wisdom. Technology itself may change the way humanity views itself and the world around us. Take computers for example. They are created by man, function much like the human brain, and are ruled by binary code, a duality of one’s and zero’s, yes’s and no’s. A computer can only do what it has been programmed to do. Yes, there are those working on algorithms that could simulate artificial intelligence, but those are just algorithms. The basic design of the computer is incapable of intelligence for simple reason, duality. It is within this binary code, that computers are trapped. This is changing. Quantum mechanics have given us insight into the workings of the atom. Using the spin of the atom as a code, the atom’s spin has a triune nature, with two opposite spins (which can be viewed as a one and a zero), but it also has the key to unlocking intelligence, the third point, the ‘superposition’. This superposition is the point where the one and the zero come together and form, ten, if you will. It is the third point that creates the necessary triangle, the triangle of life, and thus when this is applied to computers (in the form of quantum computers), the computer’s speed increases exponentially. But speed is not the only purpose, for I believe that with a triangular system of understanding, computers would have the necessary capacity to learn, to have an artificial intelligence. This condition of computers also points out man’s tragic flaw. By existing in a dualistic plane, we are no more than computers, capable of only that which we are programmed to do. In reality, we are capable of more, but by rejecting the third point of our own triangle, the Soul in the Mind, Body, Soul relationship, we relegate ourselves to be nothing better than a computer, a binary existence, and the limits therein.
There are also two emerging scientific and philosophical theories that are beginning to shape how we view reality, the Holographic Universe and the String theory. The Holographic Universe theory originates, as Michael Talbot explains in “The Holographic Universe”, from an experiment conducted in 1982. In this experiment, scientists were controlling the spin of electrons through electromagnetism. They found that when they changed the spin of one electron, the spin of another electron, 10 feet away, changed on its own to match the other electron. Continuing with this experiment, the scientists found that, under the proper conditions, distance didn’t affect the time of the change at all, the change occurred SIMULTANEOUSLY. For some, this revelation was impossible, for it broke the speed barrier of light, and thus it broke Einstein’s theory of relativity, and it shattered quantum mechanics. In order to keep the world of quantum mechanics, and our sanity, one of two things must be accepted, and thus the two tenants of the Holographic Universe.
Before talking about the two options, I’d like to briefly explain holograms themselves. Holograms are 3-D photographs created with the help of a laser. First, the object that one wants to capture is engrossed in the light from one laser; a second laser beam is then bounced off the light that is reflected (the light that does not go through or past the object). The resulting intersection of the two lasers is then recorded onto film. This can be one frame for a single image, or multiple frames for a moving image, or a movie. When developed, the film looks indiscernible, a collage of light and dark lines; however, when a 3rd laser is beamed directly through the film, a 3-D image is created. Holograms also carry an interesting, the part is equal to, but smaller than the whole (or “whole in every part”), phenomenon. Thus, if one were to cut the film into two different pieces, and then illuminate with a laser again, you would have two, smaller, yet identical, images, not two halves. So, every tiny piece of the film contains the information of the whole.
The first option is that this world is a hologram, a fake, a phony. It is an illusion, much like Maya of Hinduism or the Matrix, and it is controlled by something, a world of computers, the Archons, whatever. Thus, quantum mechanics still exists, but this world is a hologram. This essentially means that the cave and the outside world are not of the same existence, but in fact, the cave is just an illusion or a hologram of the outside world. While this is a perfectly good explanation, I just don’t believe it, for the same reasons that I doubt that the Archons created this world. I believe in the second option.
The second option is that this world is real, the hologram is real, and that the connection between everyone, everything, the connection that transcends the laws of quantum mechanics is actually the Self. This is a perfect representation of Tao; we are smaller wholes of the same Self. This also fits directly with Carl Jung’s concept of the collective unconscious. We share a bond, a connection that we are ignorant to. We think similarly and feel similarly because we are the same parts to the whole. The hero myth exists in every culture and belief system because it is part of the Self, it is apart of every piece of the puzzle. One could even say that the hero myth is our destiny.
Now that we’ve discussed the Holographic Universe, let’s analyze the String theory. The String Theory, in all of its quarks is too discombobulated and unorganized (and as of right now, not even complete) to write down extensively. The basics behind this theory are simple. Everything we see is made up of particles, like the elementary electrons and protons that fill science textbooks. There are, according to theorists and mathematicians dedicated to complex models, many, many different particles, fulfilling many different roles and balancing out many complex and intense equations, equations that would probably require a Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics or Theoretical Calculus. The string theory states, in its simplest form, that everything is made up of strings, perhaps the same, identical string, and that these strings (or just one string) vibrate at different frequencies, thus producing the different particles we see. Just like the guitar produces similar notes from different strings, as well as different notes from the same string, so too these strings (or singular string) create the particles of our universe, the particles that shape our reality. This view of the universe has an interesting impact. It may give us an understanding to what the number 432 really is, and why the frequency setting of 432 is referred to as the natural or universal frequency setting.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
The Age of Reason spawned from man’s desire to utilize his intellect and understand, and then explain, everything. Despite all the knowledge they gained, these intellectuals of the Age of Reason were no more than everyday fools. Every teenager, at one point in their life, discovers enough of the world, that they claim to know everything, or enough to no longer need any more, but as every aged adult knows, they do not, and the quest for knowledge is a LIFE-long process. As Socrates said, according to Plato, “I am wise because I know that I do not know.” Despite all of his “knowledge”, Socrates realized that there were many things he did not know; Socrates recognized the occult, the hidden. This was the case of many philosophers of the ancient world. They were scientists and occultists at the same time, which isn’t hard to believe because they are different sides of the same spectrum of light. They recognized that the occult, science, and truth formed the triangular relationship of knowledge, and that through the occult and science, they could discover the truth. With two points, it is far easier to construct a triangle, than it is with just one point. With just one point, “the odds of successfully navigating an asteroid field [approximately 3720 to 1, according to C-3PO]” are far less than the odds of finding the other two points and successfully constructing a triangle even close to the real triangle in question. Despite this, science still pressed on without the occult.
The main goal of early scientists was to understand everything they saw, such as the stars. The stars were always a big part of the occult because they were unknown to humans before the telescope allowed us a closer, more detailed look. Galileo’s telescope, one of the many inventions during the Age of Reason, killed the occult. The mythic, human hero had been killed by the singularity that is monotheism, and only the gods of the heavens had remained. When science began to uncover the solar system and subsequently, the entire universe, there was no where left for the old occult to hide. Monotheism had killed the beloved hero, and science had slaughtered the gods. There ceased to be a mystical and metaphysical nature to the universe, and we were left with just the natural realm, as defined by science, and the supernatural realm, as defined by monotheistic religion. Without the occult to balance society, to provide the third link in the triangle, the link between natural and supernatural, monotheism and science fought on in the minds of humanity.
The fight between Monotheism and Science picked up considerable steam with Darwin, creating the debate which still carries considerable weight today: Creation vs. Evolution, the Big Bang vs. God, Old Earth vs. Young Earth, etc. Without the occult as a medium, just like the Star Wars galaxy without the Jedi, the state of duality pervades and rules society. The power between these two powers shifted back and forth over the course of the past, all the while, the occult, which was seemingly dead, waited for its to chance to spring back. As Campbell daftly points out, “With the end…of the mythological age… [it] did not actually end. It retired…behind the screen of time and space”. (206) This mythological age is actually the distant past of the ancient world, where man and gods lived together, in harmony, before time itself. This is why Star Wars begins with, “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…”, for the stories of Star Wars speak of the timeless myths, the never-ending occult. This occult continues on, behind the veil of our perceptions, behind the veil of its apparent death at the hands of science and monotheism; it carries on in the hearts of man in the form of romanticism, art, music, and love itself. For love, true love, is selfish, and rightly so because it is two parts of the same Self, joining together to form bonds and break barriers, to create life itself. Thus the Age of Reason moved onto the Age of Romanticism, and then on to the Age of Realism and then Modernism, and now, Post-modernism, all the while, the occult waited, it waited for the breath of life to be thrust into it by the expanding minds, hearts, and lungs of humanity. This is not so unlike the only two remaining Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, presumed to be dead, “their fire [having] gone out of the universe”, just waiting and watching, waiting for the right time, for the open mind of an another generation, the generation of “a new hope”, of spirited rebellion, of “the return of the Jedi”.
Thus, time moved on, without the outward presence of the occult, and science moved on as well. From Newton’s apple, came gravity, a mysterious force of attraction that, much like the divine spark (the Holy Spirit) in Christianity, is never fully explained. We know that it is an energy field, based on the attraction between two objects. Einstein and others of the early 20th century told us that it distorts the fabric of space-time, much like a ball resting on a blanket that is not completely taut. These distortions create ripples, and anything within these ripples, like say, the moon and all the inhabitants on Earth, are kept inside the boundaries created by this massive object, unless an object were to reach a speed fast enough to overcome the gravitational pull, the boundary of the ripple. Science tells us that mass and spin, or centripetal force, create gravity. Science also tells us, through Einstein’s famous formula, E = mc2, that energy equals mass times the speed of light squared (the speed of light, interestingly enough, is roughly 432 squared, just keep that in mind). Since the speed of light is a constant, about 186,000 miles per second, then essentially, energy equals mass, mass is energy. So perhaps gravity isn’t defined by the mass of an object, but instead the energy of an object. This energy is probably related to electro-magnetism, and one could perhaps picture the orbit between any two objects in terms of magnets. The larger, stronger magnet attracts the smaller one, through their opposite poles or energies, but their like poles or energies repel. Thus, the smaller magnet is held in an orbit around the point where the fields of the two magnets interact. If gravity can be reduced down to energy, then perhaps everything can. Perhaps there is an all-pervasive energy field that binds us, and controlling or using that field, that energy, will yield powers and abilities that cannot be fathomed at this point in human evolution.
Now, I will admit, this is a very elementary understanding of gravity and energy, but sometimes, we must KISS that which we are looking for, or in other words, “Keep it simple, stupid”. Yes, the string theory is a complex theory that attempts to explain every deficiency within quantum mechanics, thus providing us with a fundamental theory for everything; unfortunately, that theory has not been completely formulated, yet. I will go into the string theory later in the paper, and then I will tie it back into the energy theory I just formulated above.
Technology is the offspring of science, a tool created by the minds of humanity. To reject it, like those who reject progress in favor of nature, is to reject the mind. Without one of our points, we become relegated to duality and conflict. So technology is needed, but like the mind, it must be controlled by discipline, by understanding and wisdom. Technology itself may change the way humanity views itself and the world around us. Take computers for example. They are created by man, function much like the human brain, and are ruled by binary code, a duality of one’s and zero’s, yes’s and no’s. A computer can only do what it has been programmed to do. Yes, there are those working on algorithms that could simulate artificial intelligence, but those are just algorithms. The basic design of the computer is incapable of intelligence for simple reason, duality. It is within this binary code, that computers are trapped. This is changing. Quantum mechanics have given us insight into the workings of the atom. Using the spin of the atom as a code, the atom’s spin has a triune nature, with two opposite spins (which can be viewed as a one and a zero), but it also has the key to unlocking intelligence, the third point, the ‘superposition’. This superposition is the point where the one and the zero come together and form, ten, if you will. It is the third point that creates the necessary triangle, the triangle of life, and thus when this is applied to computers (in the form of quantum computers), the computer’s speed increases exponentially. But speed is not the only purpose, for I believe that with a triangular system of understanding, computers would have the necessary capacity to learn, to have an artificial intelligence. This condition of computers also points out man’s tragic flaw. By existing in a dualistic plane, we are no more than computers, capable of only that which we are programmed to do. In reality, we are capable of more, but by rejecting the third point of our own triangle, the Soul in the Mind, Body, Soul relationship, we relegate ourselves to be nothing better than a computer, a binary existence, and the limits therein.
There are also two emerging scientific and philosophical theories that are beginning to shape how we view reality, the Holographic Universe and the String theory. The Holographic Universe theory originates, as Michael Talbot explains in “The Holographic Universe”, from an experiment conducted in 1982. In this experiment, scientists were controlling the spin of electrons through electromagnetism. They found that when they changed the spin of one electron, the spin of another electron, 10 feet away, changed on its own to match the other electron. Continuing with this experiment, the scientists found that, under the proper conditions, distance didn’t affect the time of the change at all, the change occurred SIMULTANEOUSLY. For some, this revelation was impossible, for it broke the speed barrier of light, and thus it broke Einstein’s theory of relativity, and it shattered quantum mechanics. In order to keep the world of quantum mechanics, and our sanity, one of two things must be accepted, and thus the two tenants of the Holographic Universe.
Before talking about the two options, I’d like to briefly explain holograms themselves. Holograms are 3-D photographs created with the help of a laser. First, the object that one wants to capture is engrossed in the light from one laser; a second laser beam is then bounced off the light that is reflected (the light that does not go through or past the object). The resulting intersection of the two lasers is then recorded onto film. This can be one frame for a single image, or multiple frames for a moving image, or a movie. When developed, the film looks indiscernible, a collage of light and dark lines; however, when a 3rd laser is beamed directly through the film, a 3-D image is created. Holograms also carry an interesting, the part is equal to, but smaller than the whole (or “whole in every part”), phenomenon. Thus, if one were to cut the film into two different pieces, and then illuminate with a laser again, you would have two, smaller, yet identical, images, not two halves. So, every tiny piece of the film contains the information of the whole.
The first option is that this world is a hologram, a fake, a phony. It is an illusion, much like Maya of Hinduism or the Matrix, and it is controlled by something, a world of computers, the Archons, whatever. Thus, quantum mechanics still exists, but this world is a hologram. This essentially means that the cave and the outside world are not of the same existence, but in fact, the cave is just an illusion or a hologram of the outside world. While this is a perfectly good explanation, I just don’t believe it, for the same reasons that I doubt that the Archons created this world. I believe in the second option.
The second option is that this world is real, the hologram is real, and that the connection between everyone, everything, the connection that transcends the laws of quantum mechanics is actually the Self. This is a perfect representation of Tao; we are smaller wholes of the same Self. This also fits directly with Carl Jung’s concept of the collective unconscious. We share a bond, a connection that we are ignorant to. We think similarly and feel similarly because we are the same parts to the whole. The hero myth exists in every culture and belief system because it is part of the Self, it is apart of every piece of the puzzle. One could even say that the hero myth is our destiny.
Now that we’ve discussed the Holographic Universe, let’s analyze the String theory. The String Theory, in all of its quarks is too discombobulated and unorganized (and as of right now, not even complete) to write down extensively. The basics behind this theory are simple. Everything we see is made up of particles, like the elementary electrons and protons that fill science textbooks. There are, according to theorists and mathematicians dedicated to complex models, many, many different particles, fulfilling many different roles and balancing out many complex and intense equations, equations that would probably require a Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics or Theoretical Calculus. The string theory states, in its simplest form, that everything is made up of strings, perhaps the same, identical string, and that these strings (or just one string) vibrate at different frequencies, thus producing the different particles we see. Just like the guitar produces similar notes from different strings, as well as different notes from the same string, so too these strings (or singular string) create the particles of our universe, the particles that shape our reality. This view of the universe has an interesting impact. It may give us an understanding to what the number 432 really is, and why the frequency setting of 432 is referred to as the natural or universal frequency setting.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Monday, December 27, 2010
Gnosticism and Number Theory
If one goes back to my number theory, 777 is the perfect number of God, or perhaps the perfection of humanity, and 77 (666/3/3 +3) is the perfection of duality. One could also interpret this definition as being that 666 is the number of the archons, and likewise, if you divide it by 9, you get 74. They only reach a stage of perfect duality by controlling and absorbing (and thus adding) humanity. Thus the number of the Demi-urge is 74. If you consider these numbers from the base 7 number system, then 7 numbers are needed before one can go up to the next place-setting. Thus 777 could be seen as the equivalent to 1000 in the base 10 number system. I use the base 7 number system because humanity follows a 7-day week schedule, a schedule that never changes, despite the changes in days in a month, and even days in a year. This is supposedly a product of God creating the universe (or at the very least, this solar system) in six days, and then resting on the seventh. Thus 777, is perfection of mind, body, and soul. The mind is the first place-setting, and thus, the weakest. The body is the second place-setting, and thus stronger than the mind. The soul is the final place setting, and thus the strongest. Now, one may be sitting here arguing, mind over body, saying that the mind should be more powerful than the body. My answer to those arguments is that you have mistaken the mind for the soul. The mind, much like the computer, is just a tool, a tool contained within a frame; if you drop that frame off a cliff, the mind goes with it, for computers have no soul. We trump our mind over our body, and thus forget about our body. We are arrogant. We are fools. Thus, the purpose of meditation, is to quiet the mind because it (or we) believes that it is greater than the rest of the parts. By quieting the mind, one can heal the body, with the soul. I believe that the power of psychics (including telemetry, healing, telekinesis, empathy, telepathy, etc) derives not from their mind, but from their soul; it is their ignorance that makes them believe in their mind. The Archons, therefore, posses perfect physical powers. They can control the entire physical realm, and thus they are worshipped as nature gods. However, if their number is 74, then they don’t possess perfect minds, or in other words, they must rely on humanity (3) to provide perfect mental control. For, like the Elm Street villain, Freddy Krueger, if you simply stop believing in them, stop giving into fear, they have no control.
Likewise, if you develop the smallest amount of faith (or belief), just one unit of your soul, then you can become more powerful than the archons (100 is always greater than 74 or 77), and in the words of Christ, “If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.” (Mat 17:20) If we have the smallest unit of faith or the smallest bit of soul (for the mustard seed is a tiny seed), then nothing will be physically impossible. We will be able to lift starships out of swamps, read the minds of others, etc., and the archons will be helpless. Unfortunately, keeping with the Allegory of the Cave, the soul exists in the outside world, and we are stuck in the cave. We must perfect our bodies, our focus, our discipline, and attempt to perfect our minds. By doing such, we can overcome these Archons that plague our world, or perhaps overcome our own deficiencies. On the way through the tunnel that connects the cave to the outside world, we can completely perfect our minds. Once in the outside world, we can begin to unlock the secrets of spirituality, the secrets of our true potential. In this light, we can be like Jedi Knights, in every sense of the word. We can fulfill our hero needs, the calling and foundation of the occult.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Likewise, if you develop the smallest amount of faith (or belief), just one unit of your soul, then you can become more powerful than the archons (100 is always greater than 74 or 77), and in the words of Christ, “If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.” (Mat 17:20) If we have the smallest unit of faith or the smallest bit of soul (for the mustard seed is a tiny seed), then nothing will be physically impossible. We will be able to lift starships out of swamps, read the minds of others, etc., and the archons will be helpless. Unfortunately, keeping with the Allegory of the Cave, the soul exists in the outside world, and we are stuck in the cave. We must perfect our bodies, our focus, our discipline, and attempt to perfect our minds. By doing such, we can overcome these Archons that plague our world, or perhaps overcome our own deficiencies. On the way through the tunnel that connects the cave to the outside world, we can completely perfect our minds. Once in the outside world, we can begin to unlock the secrets of spirituality, the secrets of our true potential. In this light, we can be like Jedi Knights, in every sense of the word. We can fulfill our hero needs, the calling and foundation of the occult.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Gnosticism
It is at this point that I must address Gnosticism before moving any further. Gnosticism comes from the Greek word, “gnosis”, which means knowledge. The term “agnostic” is a term that describes those who search for the truth through reason alone. Agnostics argue that what is beyond the powers of reason is beyond the boundaries of human intellect, and unfortunately, Agnostics have forgotten the power of the soul. Gnostics attempt to search for the divine, the unknown, the occult through knowledge, both the outer knowledge of the mind and reason, and the inner knowledge of the soul, the divine spark. Like all other religions, Gnosticism had many disjointed sects, believing a wide-range of things, but the majority, believed in Christ. Many of the Cabalists, followers of Jewish mysticism, did not recognize Christ, but neither do the mainstream Jews. The Gnostics, however, did not view Christ to be the savior of our souls, for they believe our souls to be perfect and do not believe in the concept of “original sin”. No, Christ, according to them, was the savior of our minds. They believed that God was an indescribable essence, much like the Tao or the Force, and that YHWH, the tribal god of the Jews, was the Demi-urge. This being does not have a soul, but has great powers of the mind and body. The Demi-urge fears the potential of humanity, and attempts to keep humanity ignorant, and thus incapable of evolving and moving out of the cave. Our failure is thus not “original sin”, but ignorance and apathy. This being may have other beings that it controls, but who are more powerful than humanity. In this “light”, the Demi-urge can be seen as the fire in the cave, and the workers on the walkway are the archons under the control of the fire. Thus depending on positions of the Fire, archons, and the person, the archons either seem dark and evil or bright and good. In fact, they are neither, they are just pawns.
Gnostics follow two thoughts for creation, a positive one and a negative one. In the positive view, the essence of God split itself and created the universe, and thus the spark of God was within everything. God then created beings, which some could view as angels, to keep order and balance in the newly created universe. These beings do not have a soul, but have great, great power, and became obsessed with power, and subsequently, control. The other version believes that through Self-division, God created woman, a Mother-earth goddess they call Sophia. Sophia, being one step lower than God, realizes his awesome infinitude and worships him. Sophia then tries to be like God, and out of ignorance, creates the Archons, who are led by the archon know as the Demi-Urge. The Archons have no soul, for they were created by Sophia, not God, but they are powerful, and create the universe as a realm to extend their power. Sophia, realizing her mistake, goes to God, apologizes, and then takes the spark of God, in the form of the snake in the Garden of Eden, down to humanity. The archons realizing the magnitude of this, trap Sophia in this earthly realm, banish humanity from “paradise”, and create negative stigmas for both women and the snake as a result of Sophia’s actions. In both versions, they have thus taken control of humanity through various means, monotheistic religion being one of them, and their main goal is to keep humanity from developing its potential, its soul, through ignorance. Regardless of which version you follow, God creates Christ, and sends him down to teach humanity much like the philosopher descends down into the cave to release the prisoners of the cave. Unfortunately, the message of Christ, according to the Gnostics was mutilated by the Archons into another monotheistic religion, another conflict.
I prefer to follow the path of the first creation story, for more than just optimistic, positive attitudes. The number 432, I believe, is the universal calling card of God, the fingerprint of the occult, the rhythmic pulse of the indescribable essence. If this world is an illusion, a projection created by the Archons, then this mystical number of 432 is actually their calling card, their fingerprint, and their pulse. Something within me says this cannot be so. And so, I believe that this reality, this world, this universe is real, and if any illusion exists, it exists as a shadow within the mind, a curtain that blocks us from truly interpreting what we see, hear, and feel. A curtain that some could argue creates a veil that disconnects us from the rest of the Self, from the rest of ourselves, from connecting our miniscule soul to the rest of the vast Self.
In Plato’s Cave, humanity is stuck in one of two places, in the shadows, or in the dualistic world of the fire. The duality is either created by the Demi-urge, or taken advantage of by the Demi-urge, the fire. The fire creates a powerful, but false light on the shadow wall, and its workers, its archons not only sustain the fire, but also cast shadows or illusions onto the wall. This can be seen as your nature-worship religions, belief systems that worship the seemingly random and unknown functions of nature, the shadows of the archons, the shadows of those beings who physically control this realm. When people are released, they see the fire, and they worship the fire for its light has saved them from the unknown shadows. Ironically, though, the fire has not saved them, instead, it was the one that created the shadows to begin with. The fire then mesmerizes humanity with its power, with its “glory”, and demands that the people turn their backs on the “evil” shadows, and instead, focus on the fire, worship the fire, feel the “warmth” of the fire. It is very, very intriguing to consider that YHWH, the Demi-urge according to Gnosticism, actually appears to Moses in the form of a “burning bush”. How ironic. The fire, through its use of duality and visually mesmerizing “light”, controls this world mentally.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Gnostics follow two thoughts for creation, a positive one and a negative one. In the positive view, the essence of God split itself and created the universe, and thus the spark of God was within everything. God then created beings, which some could view as angels, to keep order and balance in the newly created universe. These beings do not have a soul, but have great, great power, and became obsessed with power, and subsequently, control. The other version believes that through Self-division, God created woman, a Mother-earth goddess they call Sophia. Sophia, being one step lower than God, realizes his awesome infinitude and worships him. Sophia then tries to be like God, and out of ignorance, creates the Archons, who are led by the archon know as the Demi-Urge. The Archons have no soul, for they were created by Sophia, not God, but they are powerful, and create the universe as a realm to extend their power. Sophia, realizing her mistake, goes to God, apologizes, and then takes the spark of God, in the form of the snake in the Garden of Eden, down to humanity. The archons realizing the magnitude of this, trap Sophia in this earthly realm, banish humanity from “paradise”, and create negative stigmas for both women and the snake as a result of Sophia’s actions. In both versions, they have thus taken control of humanity through various means, monotheistic religion being one of them, and their main goal is to keep humanity from developing its potential, its soul, through ignorance. Regardless of which version you follow, God creates Christ, and sends him down to teach humanity much like the philosopher descends down into the cave to release the prisoners of the cave. Unfortunately, the message of Christ, according to the Gnostics was mutilated by the Archons into another monotheistic religion, another conflict.
I prefer to follow the path of the first creation story, for more than just optimistic, positive attitudes. The number 432, I believe, is the universal calling card of God, the fingerprint of the occult, the rhythmic pulse of the indescribable essence. If this world is an illusion, a projection created by the Archons, then this mystical number of 432 is actually their calling card, their fingerprint, and their pulse. Something within me says this cannot be so. And so, I believe that this reality, this world, this universe is real, and if any illusion exists, it exists as a shadow within the mind, a curtain that blocks us from truly interpreting what we see, hear, and feel. A curtain that some could argue creates a veil that disconnects us from the rest of the Self, from the rest of ourselves, from connecting our miniscule soul to the rest of the vast Self.
In Plato’s Cave, humanity is stuck in one of two places, in the shadows, or in the dualistic world of the fire. The duality is either created by the Demi-urge, or taken advantage of by the Demi-urge, the fire. The fire creates a powerful, but false light on the shadow wall, and its workers, its archons not only sustain the fire, but also cast shadows or illusions onto the wall. This can be seen as your nature-worship religions, belief systems that worship the seemingly random and unknown functions of nature, the shadows of the archons, the shadows of those beings who physically control this realm. When people are released, they see the fire, and they worship the fire for its light has saved them from the unknown shadows. Ironically, though, the fire has not saved them, instead, it was the one that created the shadows to begin with. The fire then mesmerizes humanity with its power, with its “glory”, and demands that the people turn their backs on the “evil” shadows, and instead, focus on the fire, worship the fire, feel the “warmth” of the fire. It is very, very intriguing to consider that YHWH, the Demi-urge according to Gnosticism, actually appears to Moses in the form of a “burning bush”. How ironic. The fire, through its use of duality and visually mesmerizing “light”, controls this world mentally.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Which one is real?
Day One Assignment – “Biographies”
Jon Headlee
#1
Some call me Squirrel; others call me Jon Headlee. Nevertheless, I was born in Seattle on June 10th, 1982. My early childhood was fairly non-descript. That is to say, it was a normal one. All of that seemed to change in the early 1990s. I started listening to the wonderful sounds of grunge music, and at the same time, my parents began their downward spiral towards divorce.
In the summer of 1995, they finally made it official, and I moved with my mother to Vancouver. It was the time of my life. We were living with my Grandparents – my loaded Grandparents, and they wasted no opportunity to spoil me. Shortly after I turned 15, I was introduced to a wonderful, almost fantasy-like world. It was the world of drugs, and everything from pot to acid to shrooms to even DMT seemed readily available.
That was until my Grandparents found out about it. Naturally, they freaked, and my Grandfather, being a retired Marine, suggested military school. I’m still not sure why they shipped me more than 3,000 miles away, but at age 17, I ended up at Randolph Macon. It was harsh, but it was also only a year.
Afterwards, I came to VCU to study criminal justice, and my intention is to go on to study law. One day, I will legalize all those drugs that are so hated. One day I will validate my belief that drugs, especially hallucinogens, are not bad, but in fact, very helpful.
#2
I was born Jonathan David Headlee at the Air Force Academy Hospital on June 21st, 1986. I’ve always hated my full name, and since I was young, I’ve gone by Jon. My dad was in the Air Force, and so we moved a few times during my youth. When I was four, we moved from our gorgeous home in Colorado Springs to a dusty new suburb in Fayetteville, North Carolina. The neighborhood still wasn’t finished when we moved out 3 years later.
We ended up in Centreville, a suburb in the growing Fairfax County. It was here I discovered football when I was ten, and I loved it. I played four years of youth ball, and then another four years in high school. Despite winning the state championship, my final game ended with tears because I knew I would never play again.
I came to VCU, originally to study film and psychology. After completing a pre-Art Foundation studio class, I decided that a year of hell in “Art Boot Camp” was not worth the limited Film program at VCU. Keeping Psychology, I moved on to add Philosophy as a second major after going through a personal epiphany during my English 200 class. After taking a few Religious Studies classes, I added Religious Studies as another major. It’ll take me a full 5 years, but I hope to graduate with three degrees, a creative writing minor, and hopefully a collection of films (including a documentary I’m working on with Sera Tabb) to take to grad school.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Jon Headlee
#1
Some call me Squirrel; others call me Jon Headlee. Nevertheless, I was born in Seattle on June 10th, 1982. My early childhood was fairly non-descript. That is to say, it was a normal one. All of that seemed to change in the early 1990s. I started listening to the wonderful sounds of grunge music, and at the same time, my parents began their downward spiral towards divorce.
In the summer of 1995, they finally made it official, and I moved with my mother to Vancouver. It was the time of my life. We were living with my Grandparents – my loaded Grandparents, and they wasted no opportunity to spoil me. Shortly after I turned 15, I was introduced to a wonderful, almost fantasy-like world. It was the world of drugs, and everything from pot to acid to shrooms to even DMT seemed readily available.
That was until my Grandparents found out about it. Naturally, they freaked, and my Grandfather, being a retired Marine, suggested military school. I’m still not sure why they shipped me more than 3,000 miles away, but at age 17, I ended up at Randolph Macon. It was harsh, but it was also only a year.
Afterwards, I came to VCU to study criminal justice, and my intention is to go on to study law. One day, I will legalize all those drugs that are so hated. One day I will validate my belief that drugs, especially hallucinogens, are not bad, but in fact, very helpful.
#2
I was born Jonathan David Headlee at the Air Force Academy Hospital on June 21st, 1986. I’ve always hated my full name, and since I was young, I’ve gone by Jon. My dad was in the Air Force, and so we moved a few times during my youth. When I was four, we moved from our gorgeous home in Colorado Springs to a dusty new suburb in Fayetteville, North Carolina. The neighborhood still wasn’t finished when we moved out 3 years later.
We ended up in Centreville, a suburb in the growing Fairfax County. It was here I discovered football when I was ten, and I loved it. I played four years of youth ball, and then another four years in high school. Despite winning the state championship, my final game ended with tears because I knew I would never play again.
I came to VCU, originally to study film and psychology. After completing a pre-Art Foundation studio class, I decided that a year of hell in “Art Boot Camp” was not worth the limited Film program at VCU. Keeping Psychology, I moved on to add Philosophy as a second major after going through a personal epiphany during my English 200 class. After taking a few Religious Studies classes, I added Religious Studies as another major. It’ll take me a full 5 years, but I hope to graduate with three degrees, a creative writing minor, and hopefully a collection of films (including a documentary I’m working on with Sera Tabb) to take to grad school.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Friday, December 24, 2010
The Death of the Hero and the True Occult
The Hero is a concept, an archetype if you are of the Jungian belief, of perfection, of purpose, of quintessential ideas. The concept of the hero or heroism is imbedded within the minds of everyone. Ask a young child what he or she wants to be, and you’ll hear fireman, police officer, nurse, doctor, or superhero. Why? The answer is quite simple, they want to be a hero. They want to rescue someone, they want to protect someone, they want to heal someone, or they want to transcend the limitations of humanity and fight evil, for everyone. Campbell asserts that these desires stem from an unconscious awareness of a connection that transcends our conscious understanding of the world. An understanding that the hero and that “someone” are parts of the same whole, and to save that “someone” is to save a part of yourself. “It is an impulse rising below the plane of our conscious living and judging, from our knowledge of a deep truth: that I and that other are one.” (204-205) This is the simplest understanding of the Self concept found in the East. Why else should someone sacrifice themselves for another being, unless the two shared a connection beyond cultural, political, or physical ties, a connection of a metaphysical nature. This is the basis for the occult, and why the hero is the central figure in the occult. Every belief system has at least one hero, Moses of Judaism, Buddha of Buddhism, Lao Tzu of Taoism, Jesus Christ of Christianity, Lord Krishna of Hinduism, Theseus of Greece, Cuchulain of Ireland, William Wallace of Scotland, Okuninushi of Japan, Odin and Thor of the Norse (Vikings), and Quetzalcoatl of Mexico. There are of course many, many more heroes found in every culture and religion, but that is a good list.
The heroes (and some of the gods) of the Occident and Orient were usually quite similar. Their stories were so similar that some mythologists and historians wonder if they all were actually from the same original belief structure, a belief structure created by a group of people that eventually populated the Earth. Anthropologists might claim that these were the belief structures of the first cave-dwelling humans, while occultists and conspiracy theorists might claim that they are Atlantean or alien in origin, but nevertheless, there is a connection between occult beliefs and the hero myth. The myths were so common, and the gods were so similar, in fact, that the god of one group was easily recognized as the god of another group (with just different names, and perhaps slightly different powers and/or reign). Thus, there was hardly any conflict between the religions and belief structures of various occultists. Why? It is merely because they were wise enough to recognize that the various groups of people were worshipping the same deity, thing, or what have you. Like I stated earlier when I introduced the Hero Myth, the hero myth provides the cement for foundation myths to harden. Without them, foundation myths, and occult beliefs themselves, fall apart.
Monotheistic traditions of the Levantine claim their heroes, Zoroaster, Moses (and Abraham), Jesus Christ, and Mohammad, to be the only hero or in some cases, the last hero, the last of God’s prophets. Monotheistic religions are based around tribal deities, or a Supernatural God that has chosen a specific group of people spread the truth and shine a light onto this world of darkness. The creator or continuing prophet of that religion is put forth as a hero, and all other “heroes” are connected to some evil being, whether it be a demon or Satan himself. Thus, not only is the hero “killed” by monotheism, but all other manifestations of the hero are connected to a source of evil.
The death of all other heroes continues on with the attack on the gods of other beliefs. According to Robert Goldenburg, Christianity and Judaism, both religions that demand faith to one God and deny all other gods, share a hate towards other faiths, “Certain biblical authors, however, do present an attitude of vehement and unrelenting contempt and rejection toward the religions of other nations, a stance distinguished for its principled denial that foreign deities have any reality at all.” (p. 22) Campbell agrees with this notion, and the rise of Judaism, and subsequently Christianity and Islam, gradually deteriorated the mythical occult (which centered on a metaphysical aspect of nature). Also, this created a new type of occult, a “two-way occult: on the hand, the approved cult, which is worship of our own tribal deity (Semitic God)… and… the diabolic occult of the powers of the nature religions, who are…independent enemies of Yahweh, but in the Christian tradition…a devil who can only act with the permission of the one true and only God.” (212, 213) Campbell does not delve into the reasons Judaism and Christianity adopted a hate towards occult practices, other than the disparities between their “supernatural” God, and the occult’s belief in a metaphysical nature; however, he does suggest that the rise of these religions led to the decline of the mythological occult, and the rise of a new occult, the occult most commonly recognized today. This occult, or “black magic” or paganism, usually revolved around practices that were outlawed by Christianity. (213) They typically believed and worshiped “the Devil”, and/or “mother nature”, and since God is viewed as a man, and the Devil is the source of evil, the leaders of Christianity labeled it heresy. This heresy was soon transformed to every other practice, which explains the Crusades (Christianity viewed Islam as its enemy, and Allah as the Devil), and was adapted to every form of non-Christian worship.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
The heroes (and some of the gods) of the Occident and Orient were usually quite similar. Their stories were so similar that some mythologists and historians wonder if they all were actually from the same original belief structure, a belief structure created by a group of people that eventually populated the Earth. Anthropologists might claim that these were the belief structures of the first cave-dwelling humans, while occultists and conspiracy theorists might claim that they are Atlantean or alien in origin, but nevertheless, there is a connection between occult beliefs and the hero myth. The myths were so common, and the gods were so similar, in fact, that the god of one group was easily recognized as the god of another group (with just different names, and perhaps slightly different powers and/or reign). Thus, there was hardly any conflict between the religions and belief structures of various occultists. Why? It is merely because they were wise enough to recognize that the various groups of people were worshipping the same deity, thing, or what have you. Like I stated earlier when I introduced the Hero Myth, the hero myth provides the cement for foundation myths to harden. Without them, foundation myths, and occult beliefs themselves, fall apart.
Monotheistic traditions of the Levantine claim their heroes, Zoroaster, Moses (and Abraham), Jesus Christ, and Mohammad, to be the only hero or in some cases, the last hero, the last of God’s prophets. Monotheistic religions are based around tribal deities, or a Supernatural God that has chosen a specific group of people spread the truth and shine a light onto this world of darkness. The creator or continuing prophet of that religion is put forth as a hero, and all other “heroes” are connected to some evil being, whether it be a demon or Satan himself. Thus, not only is the hero “killed” by monotheism, but all other manifestations of the hero are connected to a source of evil.
The death of all other heroes continues on with the attack on the gods of other beliefs. According to Robert Goldenburg, Christianity and Judaism, both religions that demand faith to one God and deny all other gods, share a hate towards other faiths, “Certain biblical authors, however, do present an attitude of vehement and unrelenting contempt and rejection toward the religions of other nations, a stance distinguished for its principled denial that foreign deities have any reality at all.” (p. 22) Campbell agrees with this notion, and the rise of Judaism, and subsequently Christianity and Islam, gradually deteriorated the mythical occult (which centered on a metaphysical aspect of nature). Also, this created a new type of occult, a “two-way occult: on the hand, the approved cult, which is worship of our own tribal deity (Semitic God)… and… the diabolic occult of the powers of the nature religions, who are…independent enemies of Yahweh, but in the Christian tradition…a devil who can only act with the permission of the one true and only God.” (212, 213) Campbell does not delve into the reasons Judaism and Christianity adopted a hate towards occult practices, other than the disparities between their “supernatural” God, and the occult’s belief in a metaphysical nature; however, he does suggest that the rise of these religions led to the decline of the mythological occult, and the rise of a new occult, the occult most commonly recognized today. This occult, or “black magic” or paganism, usually revolved around practices that were outlawed by Christianity. (213) They typically believed and worshiped “the Devil”, and/or “mother nature”, and since God is viewed as a man, and the Devil is the source of evil, the leaders of Christianity labeled it heresy. This heresy was soon transformed to every other practice, which explains the Crusades (Christianity viewed Islam as its enemy, and Allah as the Devil), and was adapted to every form of non-Christian worship.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Thursday, December 23, 2010
The Occult and the Rise of Christianity
It is imperative to define the occult now, for it is a solid understanding of the occult that will allow us to make the baby steps in our next great evolutionary step. The occult, in the simplest understanding, is the hidden. It is that which we do not know. It is what we fear and seek simultaneously. There are two types of people within the occult, pursuers and followers, and though these people may call the occult by various names, it is essentially all the same; it is still the unknown.
The pursuers of the occult are those who seek to uncover that which is hidden or unseen. These people use many different methods, but it usually comes down to either a pursuit of the mind or a pursuit of the soul, and sometimes both. Those who use their mind to pursue the occult tend to use logic and reasoning as their main tools, and thus many of these people are philosophers. Gnostics, those who seek gnosis or true knowledge, also pursue with their mind. Other people like, alchemists, used a combination of science and spirituality to unlock the occult. Likewise, those who pursue with the soul utilize different methods as well, many of which revolve around some sort of meditation. Meditation almost seems to be the opposite of pursuit with the mind because the goal of meditation is to quiet the mind and feel the soul. Among those who pursue with the soul are Buddhists, Taoists, Shamans, Mystics, and the Jedi of Star Wars. The emphasis is on feeling to know, rather than thinking in order to know (Jedi, interestingly enough, emphasize the Wiccan concept of, “I do not think, I know”, which is directly referenced in many places in Star Wars, but is also echoed by Yoda’s, “Do or do not, there is no try”). The last group, those who utilize both, can best be represented by the Wiccans or the Magic arts. In Magick, one attempts to use the mind to gain control of the spirit, and possibly the spirits of others, in order to search the unknown. Usually one does this through spoken word, which emphasizes the power of the Logos (sometimes referred to as Jesus), as the connection between the natural and the metaphysical, the mind and the soul. Jesus is also referred to as the body of God, and thus, by utilizing the Logos, the body becomes connected to the mind and soul, forming the necessary triangle of humanity.
The other category of occultists are the followers. These people do not seek to actively pursue the occult, to unlock the unknown. Instead, they follow the small pieces that they do know, in hope of some salvation. The Hindus seek salvation from this illusionary world of Maya, and want to become one with the godhead, Brahmin. Confucius of ancient China taught a doctrine of respect and morality that was to be followed, which many Chinese did (and many people still do). All religions with a prophecy for an apocalypse or cleansing preach a life of practice, belief, and acceptance (pursuit is sometimes frowned upon) in order to save oneself from the impending doom. While many religions and belief structures teach this basic philosophy, this is best seen in Christianity and the related religions of Zoroastrianism, Judaism, and Islam.
In Christianity, we are all born sinners and are doomed to Hell at birth. Thus, we become dependent upon salvation, a savior, a hero. Instead of striving to become a hero ourselves, we are left to be saved by Christ. The best we can become are “mini-Christs”, or as the popular bracelet says, in such a polarizing manner, “What Would Jesus Do?” Thus Christianity spells the end of the hero’s quest, as we, according to Christianity, aren’t capable of journeying between “the two worlds”, and must instead rely on Christ as our hero to take us from the physical to the spiritual. Oddly, though, while we must rely on Christ to save us, we all contain the Holy Spirit which could be considered the spirit or soul of God. So we all have a spark of divinity, a piece of God, within us, and yet we are somehow still doomed to failure without Christ. This curious part of Christianity is never fully explained.
Keeping on the topic of Christianity, it is good to note the relationship between the occult and Christianity. It is quite safe to say that it hasn’t been a friendly one to say the least. In the eyes of Christianity, or at least those in power of the religion, the occult is almost every other belief system, sparing perhaps Judaism and Islam, and the occult is evil. The occult is the personification of Satan’s control over the world. Christianity makes no distinction between the peaceful and serene Taoist and the sometimes barbaric and heartless Celt. Not that the Celts were evil or primitive people, nor that Taoists are personifications of peace, but in the eyes of Christianity, they are one in the same. They are the disillusioned souls under the command of Satan.
To understand the fight between Christianity and the occult, perhaps we should look at the creation myths. At this point, it is imperative to divide the world into 3 belief centers, as according to Joseph Campbell in his 1961 essay, “The Separation of the East and West”. The first is the Oriental center. The Oriental center is comprised of India and the Far East, China and Japan. The second center is the Occidental, which is primarily Europe and Northern Africa. The final center is the Levantine, located in the Middle East. These three centers have varying accounts of the creation myth, a central belief in any belief system. In the Orient, creation occurs through sacrifice. A singular, indefinite being or existence (Self, Brahma, Tao, etc) creates the universe from itself, by first splitting into two, male and female, and thus everything within the universe is not only a part of the whole, but connected to this oneness or SELF. (online) Thus the idea of procreation can almost be seen as an internal need to recreate the original creation, to come back together, to become one again, for the purpose of creating once again. This is the best source for the Star Wars concept of the Force, which was derived from the concepts of Tao and Chi. It is the eternal and ever-present SELF.
In the Occidental areas, according to Campbell, Greece especially, there is a different concept of creation. For the Greeks, they do not worry too much about how the universe came to be (explained by a Mother or goddess Earth myth), instead, they focus on how humanity came to be. Thus, in the mythological age, or the age before time, there are three races of humans, plus the gods. A race of just men resides on the Sun, a race of just women reside on Earth, and a race of men and women reside on the Moon. Each race is essentially two humans in one body. The gods of Mt. Olympus, fearing the power of humanity, decide to split the races of humanity into two parts, male and female. Thus the nature of love is a desire to be whole, and the Greeks believed in the three kinds of love, man and woman, man and man, and woman and woman. For the Greeks, as well as the rest of the Occidental world, the gods were not supernatural. They were, in relationship to man, an older race, a big brother type, and in some instances, a group of beings determined to keep humanity from reaching its potential. (online) One could almost relate the gods of the Occidental world to the Jedi and Sith of Star Wars, as they are the bigger brothers to the rest of the universe, and depending on their commitment and personality, they either take the role of the protector (Jedi) or the power monger (Sith), like many older brothers do in brother-brother or brother-sister relationships.
The final region, the Levantine, has a different viewpoint on creation. Here, creation came not from the metaphysical, but from the Supernatural. There was no splitting of God or all-pervasive being and there was no equality between God (or gods) and man, man became God’s servant, and the split of humanity, the split of the sexes occurs not within the Oneness (like Tao or Brahma), but in man. As Campbell immediately points out, this defines the differences between the East and the West. In the West, the Occidental is eventually deemed pagan and evil, and is thus swallowed up by the Levantine religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Thus, the idea of man being somewhat equal to the metaphysical gods is replaced by the idea that man is a servant to an all-powerful supernatural God. Thus humanity’s only spiritual focus should be on worshipping and following God. In the East, the focus is on the innermost Self because creation arose from an indefinite Self or Oneness, and thus a part of this Self or Oneness is found in everyone and everything. (online)
The idea of self is the basis of meditation, to center one’s self and explore the inner depths of one’s being, as well as the connections between the self and the rest of the Self, the rest of the universe. Prayer, while similar to meditation, is not to find or consult the inner, but to find and consult the outer, the supernatural. Going back to my geometric theories, the loss of the Occidental due to the Levantine has created a state of duality within the soul. Before, there were three points in belief structures: a supernatural God, a group of metaphysical gods, and an indefinite Self or Oneness. These three points created a triangle of stability, where each point is connected to all of the other points. The idea of the Self is similar to an all-powerful God, yet also similar in terms of the metaphysical to the gods of the Occidental. Likewise, a belief that the gods were like older brothers who controlled the functions of the world and humanity, but were in themselves, still capable of human imperfection, belies the sense of connection or Self, yet at the same time, the belief and worship of gods in any stature is similar to the worship of a supernatural God. Thus, these three belief centers formed the triangular relationship of humanity. By the Levantine taking over the Occidental, the balance that is the triangle was destroyed. The relationship then shifted from a triangular balance to a linear struggle, a struggle of Duality. On one side is the West, with the concepts of reason, science, and supernatural monotheism, and on the other side is the East, with the concepts of reincarnation, “alternative medicine”, and indefinite Oneness, Self, and interconnection.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
The pursuers of the occult are those who seek to uncover that which is hidden or unseen. These people use many different methods, but it usually comes down to either a pursuit of the mind or a pursuit of the soul, and sometimes both. Those who use their mind to pursue the occult tend to use logic and reasoning as their main tools, and thus many of these people are philosophers. Gnostics, those who seek gnosis or true knowledge, also pursue with their mind. Other people like, alchemists, used a combination of science and spirituality to unlock the occult. Likewise, those who pursue with the soul utilize different methods as well, many of which revolve around some sort of meditation. Meditation almost seems to be the opposite of pursuit with the mind because the goal of meditation is to quiet the mind and feel the soul. Among those who pursue with the soul are Buddhists, Taoists, Shamans, Mystics, and the Jedi of Star Wars. The emphasis is on feeling to know, rather than thinking in order to know (Jedi, interestingly enough, emphasize the Wiccan concept of, “I do not think, I know”, which is directly referenced in many places in Star Wars, but is also echoed by Yoda’s, “Do or do not, there is no try”). The last group, those who utilize both, can best be represented by the Wiccans or the Magic arts. In Magick, one attempts to use the mind to gain control of the spirit, and possibly the spirits of others, in order to search the unknown. Usually one does this through spoken word, which emphasizes the power of the Logos (sometimes referred to as Jesus), as the connection between the natural and the metaphysical, the mind and the soul. Jesus is also referred to as the body of God, and thus, by utilizing the Logos, the body becomes connected to the mind and soul, forming the necessary triangle of humanity.
The other category of occultists are the followers. These people do not seek to actively pursue the occult, to unlock the unknown. Instead, they follow the small pieces that they do know, in hope of some salvation. The Hindus seek salvation from this illusionary world of Maya, and want to become one with the godhead, Brahmin. Confucius of ancient China taught a doctrine of respect and morality that was to be followed, which many Chinese did (and many people still do). All religions with a prophecy for an apocalypse or cleansing preach a life of practice, belief, and acceptance (pursuit is sometimes frowned upon) in order to save oneself from the impending doom. While many religions and belief structures teach this basic philosophy, this is best seen in Christianity and the related religions of Zoroastrianism, Judaism, and Islam.
In Christianity, we are all born sinners and are doomed to Hell at birth. Thus, we become dependent upon salvation, a savior, a hero. Instead of striving to become a hero ourselves, we are left to be saved by Christ. The best we can become are “mini-Christs”, or as the popular bracelet says, in such a polarizing manner, “What Would Jesus Do?” Thus Christianity spells the end of the hero’s quest, as we, according to Christianity, aren’t capable of journeying between “the two worlds”, and must instead rely on Christ as our hero to take us from the physical to the spiritual. Oddly, though, while we must rely on Christ to save us, we all contain the Holy Spirit which could be considered the spirit or soul of God. So we all have a spark of divinity, a piece of God, within us, and yet we are somehow still doomed to failure without Christ. This curious part of Christianity is never fully explained.
Keeping on the topic of Christianity, it is good to note the relationship between the occult and Christianity. It is quite safe to say that it hasn’t been a friendly one to say the least. In the eyes of Christianity, or at least those in power of the religion, the occult is almost every other belief system, sparing perhaps Judaism and Islam, and the occult is evil. The occult is the personification of Satan’s control over the world. Christianity makes no distinction between the peaceful and serene Taoist and the sometimes barbaric and heartless Celt. Not that the Celts were evil or primitive people, nor that Taoists are personifications of peace, but in the eyes of Christianity, they are one in the same. They are the disillusioned souls under the command of Satan.
To understand the fight between Christianity and the occult, perhaps we should look at the creation myths. At this point, it is imperative to divide the world into 3 belief centers, as according to Joseph Campbell in his 1961 essay, “The Separation of the East and West”. The first is the Oriental center. The Oriental center is comprised of India and the Far East, China and Japan. The second center is the Occidental, which is primarily Europe and Northern Africa. The final center is the Levantine, located in the Middle East. These three centers have varying accounts of the creation myth, a central belief in any belief system. In the Orient, creation occurs through sacrifice. A singular, indefinite being or existence (Self, Brahma, Tao, etc) creates the universe from itself, by first splitting into two, male and female, and thus everything within the universe is not only a part of the whole, but connected to this oneness or SELF. (online) Thus the idea of procreation can almost be seen as an internal need to recreate the original creation, to come back together, to become one again, for the purpose of creating once again. This is the best source for the Star Wars concept of the Force, which was derived from the concepts of Tao and Chi. It is the eternal and ever-present SELF.
In the Occidental areas, according to Campbell, Greece especially, there is a different concept of creation. For the Greeks, they do not worry too much about how the universe came to be (explained by a Mother or goddess Earth myth), instead, they focus on how humanity came to be. Thus, in the mythological age, or the age before time, there are three races of humans, plus the gods. A race of just men resides on the Sun, a race of just women reside on Earth, and a race of men and women reside on the Moon. Each race is essentially two humans in one body. The gods of Mt. Olympus, fearing the power of humanity, decide to split the races of humanity into two parts, male and female. Thus the nature of love is a desire to be whole, and the Greeks believed in the three kinds of love, man and woman, man and man, and woman and woman. For the Greeks, as well as the rest of the Occidental world, the gods were not supernatural. They were, in relationship to man, an older race, a big brother type, and in some instances, a group of beings determined to keep humanity from reaching its potential. (online) One could almost relate the gods of the Occidental world to the Jedi and Sith of Star Wars, as they are the bigger brothers to the rest of the universe, and depending on their commitment and personality, they either take the role of the protector (Jedi) or the power monger (Sith), like many older brothers do in brother-brother or brother-sister relationships.
The final region, the Levantine, has a different viewpoint on creation. Here, creation came not from the metaphysical, but from the Supernatural. There was no splitting of God or all-pervasive being and there was no equality between God (or gods) and man, man became God’s servant, and the split of humanity, the split of the sexes occurs not within the Oneness (like Tao or Brahma), but in man. As Campbell immediately points out, this defines the differences between the East and the West. In the West, the Occidental is eventually deemed pagan and evil, and is thus swallowed up by the Levantine religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Thus, the idea of man being somewhat equal to the metaphysical gods is replaced by the idea that man is a servant to an all-powerful supernatural God. Thus humanity’s only spiritual focus should be on worshipping and following God. In the East, the focus is on the innermost Self because creation arose from an indefinite Self or Oneness, and thus a part of this Self or Oneness is found in everyone and everything. (online)
The idea of self is the basis of meditation, to center one’s self and explore the inner depths of one’s being, as well as the connections between the self and the rest of the Self, the rest of the universe. Prayer, while similar to meditation, is not to find or consult the inner, but to find and consult the outer, the supernatural. Going back to my geometric theories, the loss of the Occidental due to the Levantine has created a state of duality within the soul. Before, there were three points in belief structures: a supernatural God, a group of metaphysical gods, and an indefinite Self or Oneness. These three points created a triangle of stability, where each point is connected to all of the other points. The idea of the Self is similar to an all-powerful God, yet also similar in terms of the metaphysical to the gods of the Occidental. Likewise, a belief that the gods were like older brothers who controlled the functions of the world and humanity, but were in themselves, still capable of human imperfection, belies the sense of connection or Self, yet at the same time, the belief and worship of gods in any stature is similar to the worship of a supernatural God. Thus, these three belief centers formed the triangular relationship of humanity. By the Levantine taking over the Occidental, the balance that is the triangle was destroyed. The relationship then shifted from a triangular balance to a linear struggle, a struggle of Duality. On one side is the West, with the concepts of reason, science, and supernatural monotheism, and on the other side is the East, with the concepts of reincarnation, “alternative medicine”, and indefinite Oneness, Self, and interconnection.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
For Bierlein, the hero myths “offer an eternal mirror in which we see ourselves.” These myths are not merely tales of adventure, like American Westerns, for they also speak to a greater, metaphysical sense, “only in moments of ‘opening,’ revelation, and transcendence do we see the gods address or aid the hero.” (Living Myths, 120) Hero myths are connected to the occult because they are shining examples of what that particular mythological system represents. For Campbell, any religion can be considered part of the occult, and thus Jesus Christ is a shining example of Christianity’s belief structure. According to Campbell’s “The Hero with a Thousand Faces”, the hero and religion’s god, or the occult’s metaphysical presence in nature, are connected, “The two…are thus understood as the outside and inside of a single, self-mirrored mystery, which is identical with the mystery of the manifest world.”(40) Again, we see the word mirror. To both Campbell and Bierlein, the hero myths reflect the inner “occult” in all of us. They are stories that connect humanity to the occult, the hidden, the metaphysical, or to God himself. I believe this stems from an innate feeling that the metaphysical, the Self, the “Tao”, the FORCE, lies within all of us, and religion or the occult (and subsequently hero myths) is a way of explaining a sense or a feeling that cannot be represented by our physical senses.
Like “The Greatest Story Ever Told”, the hero myth/story of Christ, is the foundation of Christianity, so too are all the hero myths. Without a hero, without an icon, without a symbol, a belief structure cannot exist. Some attribute this to Carl Jung’s collective unconsciousness and archetypes, while others say that heroes are merely humanity’s need for perfection, and those heroes represent the quintessential of a belief system. The why, is not important, however, because no one can deny the power of hero myths. Hero myths make the unknown convincing and enthralling, while at the same time, inspiring others to follow in the path of the hero. Hero myths inspire us to better ourselves, to better humanity, and to strive for some goal or quest. Without them, there is only complacency.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Like “The Greatest Story Ever Told”, the hero myth/story of Christ, is the foundation of Christianity, so too are all the hero myths. Without a hero, without an icon, without a symbol, a belief structure cannot exist. Some attribute this to Carl Jung’s collective unconsciousness and archetypes, while others say that heroes are merely humanity’s need for perfection, and those heroes represent the quintessential of a belief system. The why, is not important, however, because no one can deny the power of hero myths. Hero myths make the unknown convincing and enthralling, while at the same time, inspiring others to follow in the path of the hero. Hero myths inspire us to better ourselves, to better humanity, and to strive for some goal or quest. Without them, there is only complacency.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
King Arthur's Sister Goes to Washington
Final Page - written by Mark Twain and channeled through Kim Headlee:
I broke off because the time-folding device, which I had been (stupidly, perhaps, but there you have it) clutching all the while he was reading the Manuscript, had begun growing warm again--I mean, much warmer than my hand alone could have done. My heart lurched; I thought I'd accidentally activated it.
Its light was flashing green rather than red.
Sandy, who'd been staring at me, slack-jawed, as if I'd just sprouted a third arm, said:
"Hurry, pull it off!"
"I can't! It's already bonded." A thought occurred, a possibility I hadn't considered before, and I felt calmness wash over me like a wave. "Either I'm about to disappear again, or--"
When the flash passed and my eyesight cleared, I was still standing inside the private office of the owner of the London Knights baseball team. Sandy was still behind its massive desk, though he had risen from the chair and was grinning broadly, a grin I knew wasn't meant for me.
Behind me, a dear familiar female voice said:
"Arthur, I have ever so much to explain to thee . . ."
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
I broke off because the time-folding device, which I had been (stupidly, perhaps, but there you have it) clutching all the while he was reading the Manuscript, had begun growing warm again--I mean, much warmer than my hand alone could have done. My heart lurched; I thought I'd accidentally activated it.
Its light was flashing green rather than red.
Sandy, who'd been staring at me, slack-jawed, as if I'd just sprouted a third arm, said:
"Hurry, pull it off!"
"I can't! It's already bonded." A thought occurred, a possibility I hadn't considered before, and I felt calmness wash over me like a wave. "Either I'm about to disappear again, or--"
When the flash passed and my eyesight cleared, I was still standing inside the private office of the owner of the London Knights baseball team. Sandy was still behind its massive desk, though he had risen from the chair and was grinning broadly, a grin I knew wasn't meant for me.
Behind me, a dear familiar female voice said:
"Arthur, I have ever so much to explain to thee . . ."
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Monday, December 20, 2010
The Hero's Quest and Star Wars
Plato’s Allegory of the cave is also the Hero’s Quest as defined by Joseph Campbell. Kirsten Brennan analyzed Joseph Campbell’s Hero With a Thousand Faces, and broke it up into parts with comparisons to Star Wars and The Matrix in her article “Star Wars Origins”. There are three basic stages in the hero’s journey. The first stage is the Departure. This is the hero leaving his natural realm to entire into something greater, usually to leave the cave. Within the Departure is the call to adventure, which is seen in Princess Leia’s message for help. Next is the refusal of the call; Luke has to stay and help out with the harvest – “Look, I can’t get involved”. Following the refusal, the hero then receives supernatural aid, and this comes in the form of Obi-Wan when Luke gets ambushed by sand people. This aid from Obi-Wan, combined with R2-D2’s insistent need to find Ob-Wan, saves Luke from also being killed by the same stormtroopers that kill his aunt and uncle. After being rescued or aided by a supernatural force, the hero accepts the quest, crosses the first threshold, and enters into the belly of the whale. In Star Wars, the threshold is Tatooine, and the belly of the whale can be viewed as either the Cantina or the trash compactor on the Death Star. (online)
The second stage according to Campbell, and analyzed and compared by Brennan, is the Initiation. This is where the hero attains some level of divine; for Luke, he becomes a Jedi. The first part of the Initiation is the road of trials. For Luke his first trial is the lightsaber training on the Millennium Falcon, and his final trial doesn’t occur until he beats his father aboard the second Death Star, realizes his dark emotions, renounces the Dark Side, and refuses to fight any more. Following the trials, the hero meets the goddess, which can be seen when Luke rescues Leia from her cell. Next comes the temptation away from the path, seen by Luke’s flirtation with the Dark Side while captive aboard the second Death Star. Following the flirtation, the hero atones with his father; likewise, Luke finally saves the soul of his father, Anakin, in the waning moments of Return of the Jedi. After the hero atones with his father, he reaches Apotheosis, or a god-like state. Following the death of the Emperor and the saving of Darth Vader’s soul, Luke is now a Jedi, “like [his] father before [him]”. After reaching the final stage, the source, comes “the final boon”, which is seen with the destruction of the Death Stars, in both A New Hope and Return of the Jedi, as well as the death of the Emperor. (online) The final stage, at least in Star Wars, occurs out of order due mostly to the complex story arch in which A New Hope by itself is one journey, and the entire original trilogy is an over-arching journey as well. Perhaps, though, this complexity is an integral reason for the appeal of Star Wars.
The final stage of the hero’s journey, as outlined by Brennan’s interpretation of Campbell, is the Return. While it is interesting to note that there is no actual “return” in Return of the Jedi, there is one in A New Hope. The first stage of the Return is the refusal to return, and we see this when Look doesn’t want to leave the Death Star, but instead wants to avenge Obi-Wan’s death, and shoot Darth Vader. Obi-Wan’s wisdom echoes through to Luke, “Run Luke, Run”, and Luke heeds Obi-Wan and runs. Following the refusal is a “magical flight”, which is seen many times in Star Wars, almost always aboard the junky, but somehow reliable Millennium Falcon. After the hero’s magical flight, he is “rescued from without”. This is actually in both A New Hope and Return of the Jedi, as Han saves Luke from Vader during the attack on the first Death Star, and Darth Vader saves Luke from the Emperor at the end of Return of the Jedi. After being rescued by an outside character, the hero crosses the return threshold, and likewise Luke destroys the first Death Star, and lastly, he saves his father from the “Dark Side”. The hero then becomes a master of two worlds. Interesting, Luke can only accomplish this dual mastership at the end of the trilogy, for he became a master of the human world with the destruction of the first Death Star, and he became a master of the divine world, or the Force, when he conquered the Emperor and saved his father. Lastly is the freedom to live, seen by the multitude of celebrations at the end of Return of the Jedi. (online)
The final piece of the mythical hero are the other, random mythical elements which Campbell outlines and Brennan compares to Star Wars. The first element is the two worlds. This can be seen by Plato’s division between the cave and the outside world. This can be seen in Star Wars by the natural and technological worlds. Many mythical stories also contain a prophecy, and Star Wars is no different. In Star Wars, Anakin Skywalker is considered to be the prophesied “chosen one”, “the one who will bring balance to the Force”, he fails, and in failing, he unknowingly passes this prophecy onto his son, Luke. Other characters include, the Mentor, the Oracle, the Failed Hero, the Shapeshifter, and the Animal familiar. All of these are represented in Star Wars. Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda fulfill the Mentor and Oracle figures, and both guide Luke throughout his journey. Luke’s father, Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader, is the failed hero from the prequel trilogy, while Han Solo and Lando Calrissian fulfill the shapeshifter roles, and Chewbacca fulfills the role of the Animal familiar. The final mythical elements in the hero’s journey are wearing the enemy’s skin and following a lone animal into the enchanted wood. We see this in A New Hope when the Millennium Falcon follows a single TIE fighter towards the Death Star, and later, Han and Luke put on stormtrooper disguises in order to sneak out of the Falcon and eventually into the Detention Block to rescue Princess Leia. (online) This is also seen in Return of the Jedi when Luke, Han, Leia, and Chewbacca (along with other, less important Rebels) take a stolen Imperial shuttle down to the forest moon of Endor, and then Leia follows Wicket, an Ewok, into the “enchanted wood” of Endor. As one can see, Star Wars contains all of the major elements of the mythical hero, and thus it is easy to understand why the story is so compelling and why Star Wars has become an incredible phenomenon. And to think, as Charles Chaplin outlined in his biography of George Lucas, Lucas originally wanted to create just an ode to the television serials of the 1950s and 60s, like Flash Gordon. (41-42)
The hero also represents a level of the Allegory. If the hero is a commoner, than he/she begins at the first stage. Star Wars utilizes this with Luke Skywalker. If the hero is of royalty or a commoner with apparent super-human characteristics, then he/she begins at the second stage. Star Wars also utilizes this with the story of Anakin Skywalker. If the hero begins as a superhero or a small god, then that hero begins at the third stage. This is common in Greek hero myths, such as Hercules, and prevalent in the Norse myths, for all of the heroes within the Norse myths are gods (but their gods are naturally flawed and doomed). If the hero begins at the final stage, then there is no quest for knowledge or item, but rather a quest to save humanity, to rescue those below him (or her). This can partly be seen in the story of Christ, someone who is sent from the source to save humanity, but also takes on the second stage by beginning in this world as a metaphysical commoner. After assuming his role as the hero, the hero must then go on a journey to get an artifact or object that will save humanity in the story. In Star Wars, Luke must discover the Force and become a Jedi Knight to save both his father and the Rebel Alliance.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
The second stage according to Campbell, and analyzed and compared by Brennan, is the Initiation. This is where the hero attains some level of divine; for Luke, he becomes a Jedi. The first part of the Initiation is the road of trials. For Luke his first trial is the lightsaber training on the Millennium Falcon, and his final trial doesn’t occur until he beats his father aboard the second Death Star, realizes his dark emotions, renounces the Dark Side, and refuses to fight any more. Following the trials, the hero meets the goddess, which can be seen when Luke rescues Leia from her cell. Next comes the temptation away from the path, seen by Luke’s flirtation with the Dark Side while captive aboard the second Death Star. Following the flirtation, the hero atones with his father; likewise, Luke finally saves the soul of his father, Anakin, in the waning moments of Return of the Jedi. After the hero atones with his father, he reaches Apotheosis, or a god-like state. Following the death of the Emperor and the saving of Darth Vader’s soul, Luke is now a Jedi, “like [his] father before [him]”. After reaching the final stage, the source, comes “the final boon”, which is seen with the destruction of the Death Stars, in both A New Hope and Return of the Jedi, as well as the death of the Emperor. (online) The final stage, at least in Star Wars, occurs out of order due mostly to the complex story arch in which A New Hope by itself is one journey, and the entire original trilogy is an over-arching journey as well. Perhaps, though, this complexity is an integral reason for the appeal of Star Wars.
The final stage of the hero’s journey, as outlined by Brennan’s interpretation of Campbell, is the Return. While it is interesting to note that there is no actual “return” in Return of the Jedi, there is one in A New Hope. The first stage of the Return is the refusal to return, and we see this when Look doesn’t want to leave the Death Star, but instead wants to avenge Obi-Wan’s death, and shoot Darth Vader. Obi-Wan’s wisdom echoes through to Luke, “Run Luke, Run”, and Luke heeds Obi-Wan and runs. Following the refusal is a “magical flight”, which is seen many times in Star Wars, almost always aboard the junky, but somehow reliable Millennium Falcon. After the hero’s magical flight, he is “rescued from without”. This is actually in both A New Hope and Return of the Jedi, as Han saves Luke from Vader during the attack on the first Death Star, and Darth Vader saves Luke from the Emperor at the end of Return of the Jedi. After being rescued by an outside character, the hero crosses the return threshold, and likewise Luke destroys the first Death Star, and lastly, he saves his father from the “Dark Side”. The hero then becomes a master of two worlds. Interesting, Luke can only accomplish this dual mastership at the end of the trilogy, for he became a master of the human world with the destruction of the first Death Star, and he became a master of the divine world, or the Force, when he conquered the Emperor and saved his father. Lastly is the freedom to live, seen by the multitude of celebrations at the end of Return of the Jedi. (online)
The final piece of the mythical hero are the other, random mythical elements which Campbell outlines and Brennan compares to Star Wars. The first element is the two worlds. This can be seen by Plato’s division between the cave and the outside world. This can be seen in Star Wars by the natural and technological worlds. Many mythical stories also contain a prophecy, and Star Wars is no different. In Star Wars, Anakin Skywalker is considered to be the prophesied “chosen one”, “the one who will bring balance to the Force”, he fails, and in failing, he unknowingly passes this prophecy onto his son, Luke. Other characters include, the Mentor, the Oracle, the Failed Hero, the Shapeshifter, and the Animal familiar. All of these are represented in Star Wars. Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda fulfill the Mentor and Oracle figures, and both guide Luke throughout his journey. Luke’s father, Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader, is the failed hero from the prequel trilogy, while Han Solo and Lando Calrissian fulfill the shapeshifter roles, and Chewbacca fulfills the role of the Animal familiar. The final mythical elements in the hero’s journey are wearing the enemy’s skin and following a lone animal into the enchanted wood. We see this in A New Hope when the Millennium Falcon follows a single TIE fighter towards the Death Star, and later, Han and Luke put on stormtrooper disguises in order to sneak out of the Falcon and eventually into the Detention Block to rescue Princess Leia. (online) This is also seen in Return of the Jedi when Luke, Han, Leia, and Chewbacca (along with other, less important Rebels) take a stolen Imperial shuttle down to the forest moon of Endor, and then Leia follows Wicket, an Ewok, into the “enchanted wood” of Endor. As one can see, Star Wars contains all of the major elements of the mythical hero, and thus it is easy to understand why the story is so compelling and why Star Wars has become an incredible phenomenon. And to think, as Charles Chaplin outlined in his biography of George Lucas, Lucas originally wanted to create just an ode to the television serials of the 1950s and 60s, like Flash Gordon. (41-42)
The hero also represents a level of the Allegory. If the hero is a commoner, than he/she begins at the first stage. Star Wars utilizes this with Luke Skywalker. If the hero is of royalty or a commoner with apparent super-human characteristics, then he/she begins at the second stage. Star Wars also utilizes this with the story of Anakin Skywalker. If the hero begins as a superhero or a small god, then that hero begins at the third stage. This is common in Greek hero myths, such as Hercules, and prevalent in the Norse myths, for all of the heroes within the Norse myths are gods (but their gods are naturally flawed and doomed). If the hero begins at the final stage, then there is no quest for knowledge or item, but rather a quest to save humanity, to rescue those below him (or her). This can partly be seen in the story of Christ, someone who is sent from the source to save humanity, but also takes on the second stage by beginning in this world as a metaphysical commoner. After assuming his role as the hero, the hero must then go on a journey to get an artifact or object that will save humanity in the story. In Star Wars, Luke must discover the Force and become a Jedi Knight to save both his father and the Rebel Alliance.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Sunday, December 19, 2010
The Rule of Three
It safe to assume why three is the number of humanity. Not only does it show up everywhere, but it is how holograms and our holographic memory operates (I will go into holograms and the Holographic Universe in much more depth later). For someone to truly remember something, they must first process it three times, and usually in three different ways. This is usually done almost simultaneously. A college student listening to a professor and taking notes processes the information three times all at once by hearing the information in the voice of the professor, comprehending the spoken words and writing them down on paper (or typing them on a keyboard), and then finally proofreading the notes as they are being written to confirm and further connect ideas. If any studying needs to be done, reading, rewriting, and speaking the information to one’s self can create enough pathways for the information to be considered “learned” and this knowledge is thus permanently entrenched into our minds.
Three is not just a good number for studying calculus or some other college subject, but is also a good number for studying religions. The concept of the Holy Trinity, officially recognized at the Council of Nicea, is not unique to Christianity. Hinduism holds a similar concept with Brahma (the creator, world soul, and Self or Oneness), Vishnu (the protector), and Shiva (the destroyer). There are other gods in Hinduism, but they can be equated to the saints and angels of Christianity. The Toltecas of Mexico also had a belief in the trinity (A trinity of the SELF-like god splitting into a Supreme Male god and a Supreme Female god), which made their conversion to Catholicism easy. The concept of the triune or trinity pervades the definition of humanity as well, for we are made up of a body, a mind, and a soul. Also interesting to note about Christianity, Jesus Christ supposedly lived for 33 years, yet only taught for three years.
Referring back to the numerology of Christianity, the mark of the Beast, the number of the Devil, is 666. If you divide 666 by three, you get 222. If you divide 222 by three yet again, you get 74, and if you add three to that, you get 77, one 7 short of 777. Thus by using the number 3 three times, one can turn 666 into 77, and that one 7 is actually 700, and if this number relationship has any significance, then one could argue that the Devil or Satan is not of a triangular nature, like 666 would propose, but actually of a dualistic nature, a mind and a body, but no soul. Thus, it could be understandable why humanity can have power over the Devil because the Devil lacks a soul, and the soul is more powerful than the mind or the body. Now all of my numerological deductions, I understand, may be a stretch, but one cannot refute that it is interesting nonetheless.
The rule of three even shows up in Star Wars. In the original trilogy, there are three main heroes, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia (later revealed to be Luke’s sister), and Han Solo. There are additional sidekicks, but there are only three main heroes. The triangular relationship between them is evident, as well, for Luke and Leia are twins, and Han eventually marries Leia. Also, the movies themselves are two sets of trilogies (originally written to be three trilogies, but due to age, George Lucas may never create the final one), which follow along the three act structure of epics (rise, fall, rise). Throughout the two trilogies, Emperor Palpantine (also known as Senator and Chancellor Palpantine, as well as Darth Sidious) has three apprentices, Darth Maul, Darth Tyrannus, and Darth Vader, formerly Anakin Skywalker. Also, the six movies cover the rise (and fall) of three great Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Luke Skywalker. Additionally, in the final scene of Return of the Jedi, we see the ghosts of the three Jedi that influenced Luke, Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Yoda, the seemingly ageless and wise Jedi of unknown origin (Yoda is supposedly a Whill).
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Three is not just a good number for studying calculus or some other college subject, but is also a good number for studying religions. The concept of the Holy Trinity, officially recognized at the Council of Nicea, is not unique to Christianity. Hinduism holds a similar concept with Brahma (the creator, world soul, and Self or Oneness), Vishnu (the protector), and Shiva (the destroyer). There are other gods in Hinduism, but they can be equated to the saints and angels of Christianity. The Toltecas of Mexico also had a belief in the trinity (A trinity of the SELF-like god splitting into a Supreme Male god and a Supreme Female god), which made their conversion to Catholicism easy. The concept of the triune or trinity pervades the definition of humanity as well, for we are made up of a body, a mind, and a soul. Also interesting to note about Christianity, Jesus Christ supposedly lived for 33 years, yet only taught for three years.
Referring back to the numerology of Christianity, the mark of the Beast, the number of the Devil, is 666. If you divide 666 by three, you get 222. If you divide 222 by three yet again, you get 74, and if you add three to that, you get 77, one 7 short of 777. Thus by using the number 3 three times, one can turn 666 into 77, and that one 7 is actually 700, and if this number relationship has any significance, then one could argue that the Devil or Satan is not of a triangular nature, like 666 would propose, but actually of a dualistic nature, a mind and a body, but no soul. Thus, it could be understandable why humanity can have power over the Devil because the Devil lacks a soul, and the soul is more powerful than the mind or the body. Now all of my numerological deductions, I understand, may be a stretch, but one cannot refute that it is interesting nonetheless.
The rule of three even shows up in Star Wars. In the original trilogy, there are three main heroes, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia (later revealed to be Luke’s sister), and Han Solo. There are additional sidekicks, but there are only three main heroes. The triangular relationship between them is evident, as well, for Luke and Leia are twins, and Han eventually marries Leia. Also, the movies themselves are two sets of trilogies (originally written to be three trilogies, but due to age, George Lucas may never create the final one), which follow along the three act structure of epics (rise, fall, rise). Throughout the two trilogies, Emperor Palpantine (also known as Senator and Chancellor Palpantine, as well as Darth Sidious) has three apprentices, Darth Maul, Darth Tyrannus, and Darth Vader, formerly Anakin Skywalker. Also, the six movies cover the rise (and fall) of three great Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Luke Skywalker. Additionally, in the final scene of Return of the Jedi, we see the ghosts of the three Jedi that influenced Luke, Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Yoda, the seemingly ageless and wise Jedi of unknown origin (Yoda is supposedly a Whill).
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Mathematics and Geometry
Interestingly enough, geometry and numbers can help as well. Each level of the cave represents a number. One is the number of the shadows, Two is the number of the Fire, and Three is the number of the outside world, and Four is the number of the Sun. Using these numbers in geometric terms, each stage is related to the number of points of a geometric figure. The first stage, the shadows, is merely just a point. It has no connections, it has no direction, and it has no understanding of anything beyond it. It is just a point in space. As a person is released to see the Fire, they gain another point. They now have two, opposite points: the Fire and the shadows, the light and the dark, the good and the evil. These two points have a single connection, a single line between them. It is essentially a string for tug-of-war. This is the source of duality, the source of conflict. Compromise at this level lies in the various shades of grays that the fire makes, not merely the vast black and bright white of the flame. One could argue that there are more colors in the flame than just white; however, until a person exits the cave and sees the true colors of the outside world, the fire will be too bright for them to make any distinctions between white and any other color (besides black). Everything will be light or dark; we know not what color is at this level. In the world outside the cave, there are 3 points, a triangle. The triangle is the simplest and yet, the strongest 2-D geometric figure. It has the least amount points (a line is not a 2-D figure because it has only length or width, not both) necessary to make a 2-D geometric figure, and it is the only 2-D geometric figure in which all the points touch. If you try to touch all the points in a square, the resulting criss-cross would give you four triangles. Thus the triangle is the perfect symbol of compromise because all points are connected and held in balance by the other points. It is here, in the outside world, that we understand and can see color. We move beyond duality and into compromise and understanding. The final stage has 4 points. This can be seen as triangular pyramid, the simplest 3-D geometric figure. Like the 2-D triangle, all points of the triangular pyramid are connected to the rest of the points. It also gives a good illustration of the relationship between the sun and the outside world. The base triangle of the pyramid represents the outside world, and the point at the top represents the sun or the source shining down on the triangle that is the outside world.
Geometry is not the only place where these number combinations show up. Joseph Campbell discovered the number 432 to be found in many cultures throughout the world. The Hindus have a measurement of mythological time in which there are 10 periods. As humanity progresses through each Yuga, the morality of the world decreases until it is at its worse in the 10th period (Kali). Each Yuga is 432,000 years long. In Norse mythology, there are 540 doors in the great warrior hall of the Odin. At the end of days, 800 warriors will go through each door to fight the anti-gods in an Apocalyptic battle (Ragnarok). 800 times 540 equals 432,000. According to ancient Sumerian history, there were 10 kings who ruled for 432,000 years before the deluge or the flood. In the Bible, there are 10 patriarchs, starting with Adam, who ruled for 1656 years. In 1656 years, there are 86,400 weeks (7 may have been their base number, based on the Biblical creation week, and I will explain more about the base 7 later), and if you divide that by two, you get 43,200. There are approximately 25,920 years in a complete cycle of the zodiac. If you divide 25,920 by 60, which was the number base (we use a base 10 system) of Mesopotamia in 3200 BC, you get 432. Campbell also notices that, according to an exercise physician, the target resting heart rate is 60 beats per minute. If your resting heart rate is at 60 beats per minute, you are considered to be perfectly healthy. 60 beats per minute spread out over an entire hour is 3600 beats. In the span of 12 hours, that would be exactly 43,200 beats. (Campbell 208-210) In 24 hours, you would have two sets of 43,200 beats, thus belying the sense of duality: 43,200 beats for the day and 43,200 beats for the night. Likewise, if your heart-rate is one beat per second, then there are approximately 86,400 seconds in a day, split by the duality of night and day into 43,200. Taking this even further, the holy number of God in Christianity, as described in the Apostles Creed, is 777. The mark of the beast, or Satan, in Revelation is 666. If you divide 777 by 18 (which is just 6+6+6), you get 43.2, thus the relationship between Christianity’s dualistic deities, God and Satan, Light and Dark, is equivalent to the numerical concept of 432. As Campbell said, “this is the hidden, the occult, secret of the universe, society, ourselves, and all things, and its number is 432, the number and prime sign of the occult.” (210)
Lastly, 432 can be said to be a metaphor for the relationship between God or perhaps the Tao or the Force, Humanity, and the state of Duality. If four represents God, three represents Humanity, and two represents Duality, then the relationship between them is the intricate number, 432. Also, if seven is considered to be perfection and seven is just three plus four, then seven is equivalent to the God of Humanity. Equally, if six is considered to be evil and six can be represented by two plus four, then six is equivalent to the God of Duality. One could also say that six is just three plus three, in which case humanity is its own worst enemy. This however does not stand with the concept of seven because humanity could not be the root of duality and the root of perfection simultaneously, or could it?
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Geometry is not the only place where these number combinations show up. Joseph Campbell discovered the number 432 to be found in many cultures throughout the world. The Hindus have a measurement of mythological time in which there are 10 periods. As humanity progresses through each Yuga, the morality of the world decreases until it is at its worse in the 10th period (Kali). Each Yuga is 432,000 years long. In Norse mythology, there are 540 doors in the great warrior hall of the Odin. At the end of days, 800 warriors will go through each door to fight the anti-gods in an Apocalyptic battle (Ragnarok). 800 times 540 equals 432,000. According to ancient Sumerian history, there were 10 kings who ruled for 432,000 years before the deluge or the flood. In the Bible, there are 10 patriarchs, starting with Adam, who ruled for 1656 years. In 1656 years, there are 86,400 weeks (7 may have been their base number, based on the Biblical creation week, and I will explain more about the base 7 later), and if you divide that by two, you get 43,200. There are approximately 25,920 years in a complete cycle of the zodiac. If you divide 25,920 by 60, which was the number base (we use a base 10 system) of Mesopotamia in 3200 BC, you get 432. Campbell also notices that, according to an exercise physician, the target resting heart rate is 60 beats per minute. If your resting heart rate is at 60 beats per minute, you are considered to be perfectly healthy. 60 beats per minute spread out over an entire hour is 3600 beats. In the span of 12 hours, that would be exactly 43,200 beats. (Campbell 208-210) In 24 hours, you would have two sets of 43,200 beats, thus belying the sense of duality: 43,200 beats for the day and 43,200 beats for the night. Likewise, if your heart-rate is one beat per second, then there are approximately 86,400 seconds in a day, split by the duality of night and day into 43,200. Taking this even further, the holy number of God in Christianity, as described in the Apostles Creed, is 777. The mark of the beast, or Satan, in Revelation is 666. If you divide 777 by 18 (which is just 6+6+6), you get 43.2, thus the relationship between Christianity’s dualistic deities, God and Satan, Light and Dark, is equivalent to the numerical concept of 432. As Campbell said, “this is the hidden, the occult, secret of the universe, society, ourselves, and all things, and its number is 432, the number and prime sign of the occult.” (210)
Lastly, 432 can be said to be a metaphor for the relationship between God or perhaps the Tao or the Force, Humanity, and the state of Duality. If four represents God, three represents Humanity, and two represents Duality, then the relationship between them is the intricate number, 432. Also, if seven is considered to be perfection and seven is just three plus four, then seven is equivalent to the God of Humanity. Equally, if six is considered to be evil and six can be represented by two plus four, then six is equivalent to the God of Duality. One could also say that six is just three plus three, in which case humanity is its own worst enemy. This however does not stand with the concept of seven because humanity could not be the root of duality and the root of perfection simultaneously, or could it?
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Friday, December 17, 2010
Plato's Allegory of the Cave
Plato, one of the great philosophers of ancient Greece, devised an intricate allegory meant to explain the complex process of understanding. His Allegory of the Cave was a thoughtful metaphor for the pursuit of knowledge, the quest of the philosopher. In this allegory, humanity is tied to poles with our heads tied in way to keep us permanently staring a wall in front of us. We cannot move our heads, and all we see is a result of the shadows cast on the wall by the fire behind us. The fire is maintained by workers who walk on a pathway that lies between us and the fire. Thus most of the shadows cast by the fire are actually just the shadows of these workers. The shadows are our initial preconceptions. Eventually, someone (typically a philosopher or teacher) frees us from our bonds and forces us to look back. After we adjust our eyes, we can see the entire cave: the fire, the walkway with the workers, the other prisoners, and even the shadows. The fire is the source of light inside the cave, the light that causes us to see the shadows and also causes us to polarize into light and dark, good and bad. Inside the cave are only artificial light and harsh surroundings. Beyond the fire is an exit from the cave, and the role of your mentor is to push, drag, and/or lead you out of the cave. Coming out can be very painful, and you will want to turn back, but the mentor must be there when u want to turn back. When you finally reach the outside world, you are blinded by the light or immense knowledge. Eventually you can see shapes or the basics, and slowly you can see more and more of the ground and your surroundings. Lastly, you’ll be able to see yourself in the reflection of a pond, but you still won’t be able to look up to the sky and see the sun or the source. The outside world is the true world as lighted by the sun or the source of knowledge. Once one can see the sun, or the source of knowledge, that person is truly enlightened; however the journey has only just begun. For Plato, once you are enlightened or know the truth, you must go back into the cave and try to show as many “prisoners” as possible the truth.
Most of humanity is not actually stuck to seeing just shadows. I believe that the majority of humanity is held inside the cave by the fire and the workers of the fire. We’re free to walk around and interact, but we are not free to exit the cave. In fact, it is quite possible that no one has left the cave in a long, long time. The fire creates a dualistic complex of light and dark, fire and shadows, good and bad, black and white. Thus, in the cave, we see only black, white, and shades of grey. We know nothing of color, and thus our perceptions of the world are completely skewed. It is very difficult to make it past the fire and the workers, let alone make it out of the cave and into the real world outside. Knowledge is a powerful thing, but it is very overwhelming at first. The journey would be easier if there was a mentor to lead us, but there are very few, if any, who have experienced the outside world. Thus, we must turn to the past for guidance, we must turn to the myths as our mentors.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Most of humanity is not actually stuck to seeing just shadows. I believe that the majority of humanity is held inside the cave by the fire and the workers of the fire. We’re free to walk around and interact, but we are not free to exit the cave. In fact, it is quite possible that no one has left the cave in a long, long time. The fire creates a dualistic complex of light and dark, fire and shadows, good and bad, black and white. Thus, in the cave, we see only black, white, and shades of grey. We know nothing of color, and thus our perceptions of the world are completely skewed. It is very difficult to make it past the fire and the workers, let alone make it out of the cave and into the real world outside. Knowledge is a powerful thing, but it is very overwhelming at first. The journey would be easier if there was a mentor to lead us, but there are very few, if any, who have experienced the outside world. Thus, we must turn to the past for guidance, we must turn to the myths as our mentors.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Duality Continued
So, as I mentioned before, we are stuck in Kohlberg’s stage two of moral development, a trust in society (which could be transferred to a trust in a God). This trust is flawed, however, and to understand the flaws, to see the colors beyond the black and white is to move onto the third stage of morality. This morality is not dependent upon society, but rather upon the person’s understanding of the world, perhaps even the person’s connection to their soul, perhaps even the person’s connection to the “World Soul” or the SELF. Duality traps the individual, the commoner, in between two extremes, like Conservatism and Liberalism. Both make valid claims, but in many times, neither side agrees to compromise, and even when they do, their compromise itself, is not true compromise. The "compromise" that we know is not a true balance. The individual feels the weight of this dualistic struggle, for the individual is in the middle; it is the individual that must hold up the see-saw of dualistic struggle. Thus, the individual is left with three choices: join with one, join with the other, or refuse to care (Liberate!). This is the problem in modern politics, as well as most dualistic struggles, the individual is forced to hold up this see-saw, to be the fulcrum, and yet, the individual has no power. So we are left with three groups, and still no solution. The duality of something, of everything, continues until a true balance is found.
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Religion vs. Government, Democracy vs. Tyranny, and Capitalism vs. Communism
I will apply this to religion and government. Religion and government go together, always have. In some civilizations the rulers were deemed gods or the people’s connection to the god, much like Christ is viewed as humanity’s salvation. In other civilizations the priests were at the highest social order, and the rulers looked to them for guidance. In the absence of credible religious figures, leaders turned to the unknown. King Arthur, according to myth and legend, utilized the help of Merlin the Magician. Likewise, many of our presidents have utilized the help of psychics. So it is natural for religion and government to exist together, and yet, it seems as if they are in constant conflict. Take Democracy and Communism for example. Democracy is based on freedom, it is based on humanistic ideals, and combined with Capitalism, it stresses the individual over the group. Conversely, Communism is based on equality and stresses the whole over the individual. Both have failed. It is said that “Democracy is the worst form of government, but it is the best we have.” This is so true, and at the same time, it illuminates one of the many downsides of Duality: apathy. When we are trapped between two warring sides, knowing that both are wrong, we tend to lose our spirit, lose our will for the ideal, and become lazy, apathetic realists. Religion plays a role in this because religion is responsible for the failure of both systems.
Communism failed because it strived to be atheist, saying that the government was the only thing that people needed. This failure to understand the basic needs of humanity, the needs of the soul, was the undoing of Communism. If it had been coupled with a form of stable religion, Communism would have survived. The religion would have been the uniting factor, the factor that kept the egos of the society on the same level plane. The government would have eventually dissolved, and the people would have existed in harmony, or at the very least, a much better harmony than witnessed in the former USSR, China, Cuba, and other Communistic states.
Likewise, Democracy is undone by religion. Democracy, and its chief economic counterpart, Capitalism, is based on the individual: individual freedoms, individual wants, individual needs. The government is there just as an individual-elected presence to allow the wants of the individual to come to pass. That is how it is supposed to be. Religion, on the other hand, stipulates that the individual is nothing compared to the power of a being much greater than man. Thus the individual is lowered to an insignificant level; the needs and wants are not important, only the wants, the demands of the powerful being are important. In Monotheistic religions, the being is supernatural and supreme, thus disconnected completely from the individual, usually by “imperfection” or “sin”. In many Eastern religions, everyone is part of a greater SELF, a Tao, or a Force, if you will. Thus, the needs of the individual still carry some weight, but it is the needs and wants of the whole that define the system. Regardless of which religion is followed, the individual still has no importance.
The conflict created by the combination of religion and Democracy is easily highlighted by the conflict of “Separation of Church and State”. Society, a living entity in a sense, realizes that Democracy and religion, especially a monotheistic one like Christianity, cannot co-exist, and thus it tries to create a pseudo separation. Unfortunately, society fails because the government, at least the US government, was based upon religious ideals and laws. Even the people-elected politicians (as well as the entire court system) are, for the most part, under the influence of some type of religious structure, and usually, that is monotheism.
Even the supposed Democracy of the world is nothing more than a Republic, carefully nicknamed a “representative Democracy”. This is not true, for even in a “representative Democracy”, the people are supposed to have more power than the politicians. Voter apathy is a strong indicator of who has the power; the people do not feel important, and thus they do not participate. Citizens become apathetic because the power, no matter how much some will say to the opposite, is not in the hands of the people, but in the hands of the politicians. Thus, we are a Republic, much like Rome and the “Old Republic” of the prequel trilogy in Star Wars. The Republic of Rome eventually devolved into a triumvirate, which was soon dissolved into an Imperialistic Empire. This is seen exactly in Star Wars, as the “Old Republic” slowly devolves from a Republic, to a triumvirate of the Senate, the Executive Office of the Chancellor, and the Jedi Order. Likewise, the potential for disaster lies in the US, as we are a Republic that could quickly dissolve into a triune government (and it may already be one with the Judicial, Legislative, and Executive branches), and then become an Imperialistic Empire, the very ideal of Tyranny that we are supposedly fighting against (“The Axis of Evil” of Iraq, Iran, and North Korea). If this sounds grim, take solace in the fact that Communism reverted to Tyranny as well.
Speaking of Communism, in its essence, it was never a government. It was just an economic system based on equality. Conversely, Democracy is just a governmental ideal based on equality and the rule of the whole. Capitalism was “adopted” by Democracy to perpetuate the individual, but in the end, it only perpetuates or helps a few individuals, like the Republic only grants power to the few. Equal opportunity for prosperity becomes prosperity for the few, and most of the times, those few become prosperous by taking advantage of not only the opportunity, but society itself, hence, the laws against monopolies. Perhaps the reason we do not live in a Democracy is because of the presence of Capitalism and Monotheism. Thus, Democracy vs. Communism was actually just Capitalism vs. Communism, Monotheism vs. Atheism. This is a well known and accepted idea, but what if taken in the context of Rome? What if the Cold War was merely just a battle to see which Tyranny, disguised as a government, would win? In this light, the war cries of Democracy vs. Tyranny, Patriotism vs. Terrorism, and Freedom vs. Oppression, could be seen as just another fight to preserve the status quo, the Tyranny disguised in Democracy. I offer, though, a possible solution (before returning to Duality), in the form of a question, a food for thought: What if the equal economics of Communism were combined with the equal government of Democracy and the equal philosophy of an eastern religion like Taoism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, or perhaps a combination of all four?
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
Communism failed because it strived to be atheist, saying that the government was the only thing that people needed. This failure to understand the basic needs of humanity, the needs of the soul, was the undoing of Communism. If it had been coupled with a form of stable religion, Communism would have survived. The religion would have been the uniting factor, the factor that kept the egos of the society on the same level plane. The government would have eventually dissolved, and the people would have existed in harmony, or at the very least, a much better harmony than witnessed in the former USSR, China, Cuba, and other Communistic states.
Likewise, Democracy is undone by religion. Democracy, and its chief economic counterpart, Capitalism, is based on the individual: individual freedoms, individual wants, individual needs. The government is there just as an individual-elected presence to allow the wants of the individual to come to pass. That is how it is supposed to be. Religion, on the other hand, stipulates that the individual is nothing compared to the power of a being much greater than man. Thus the individual is lowered to an insignificant level; the needs and wants are not important, only the wants, the demands of the powerful being are important. In Monotheistic religions, the being is supernatural and supreme, thus disconnected completely from the individual, usually by “imperfection” or “sin”. In many Eastern religions, everyone is part of a greater SELF, a Tao, or a Force, if you will. Thus, the needs of the individual still carry some weight, but it is the needs and wants of the whole that define the system. Regardless of which religion is followed, the individual still has no importance.
The conflict created by the combination of religion and Democracy is easily highlighted by the conflict of “Separation of Church and State”. Society, a living entity in a sense, realizes that Democracy and religion, especially a monotheistic one like Christianity, cannot co-exist, and thus it tries to create a pseudo separation. Unfortunately, society fails because the government, at least the US government, was based upon religious ideals and laws. Even the people-elected politicians (as well as the entire court system) are, for the most part, under the influence of some type of religious structure, and usually, that is monotheism.
Even the supposed Democracy of the world is nothing more than a Republic, carefully nicknamed a “representative Democracy”. This is not true, for even in a “representative Democracy”, the people are supposed to have more power than the politicians. Voter apathy is a strong indicator of who has the power; the people do not feel important, and thus they do not participate. Citizens become apathetic because the power, no matter how much some will say to the opposite, is not in the hands of the people, but in the hands of the politicians. Thus, we are a Republic, much like Rome and the “Old Republic” of the prequel trilogy in Star Wars. The Republic of Rome eventually devolved into a triumvirate, which was soon dissolved into an Imperialistic Empire. This is seen exactly in Star Wars, as the “Old Republic” slowly devolves from a Republic, to a triumvirate of the Senate, the Executive Office of the Chancellor, and the Jedi Order. Likewise, the potential for disaster lies in the US, as we are a Republic that could quickly dissolve into a triune government (and it may already be one with the Judicial, Legislative, and Executive branches), and then become an Imperialistic Empire, the very ideal of Tyranny that we are supposedly fighting against (“The Axis of Evil” of Iraq, Iran, and North Korea). If this sounds grim, take solace in the fact that Communism reverted to Tyranny as well.
Speaking of Communism, in its essence, it was never a government. It was just an economic system based on equality. Conversely, Democracy is just a governmental ideal based on equality and the rule of the whole. Capitalism was “adopted” by Democracy to perpetuate the individual, but in the end, it only perpetuates or helps a few individuals, like the Republic only grants power to the few. Equal opportunity for prosperity becomes prosperity for the few, and most of the times, those few become prosperous by taking advantage of not only the opportunity, but society itself, hence, the laws against monopolies. Perhaps the reason we do not live in a Democracy is because of the presence of Capitalism and Monotheism. Thus, Democracy vs. Communism was actually just Capitalism vs. Communism, Monotheism vs. Atheism. This is a well known and accepted idea, but what if taken in the context of Rome? What if the Cold War was merely just a battle to see which Tyranny, disguised as a government, would win? In this light, the war cries of Democracy vs. Tyranny, Patriotism vs. Terrorism, and Freedom vs. Oppression, could be seen as just another fight to preserve the status quo, the Tyranny disguised in Democracy. I offer, though, a possible solution (before returning to Duality), in the form of a question, a food for thought: What if the equal economics of Communism were combined with the equal government of Democracy and the equal philosophy of an eastern religion like Taoism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, or perhaps a combination of all four?
http://www.mrheadlee.com
http://www.vimeo.com/mrheadlee
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